A New Threat
by animefan018
Summary: New enemies are rising. The city is constantly being attacked. The Hyper Force tries to save it, but when their leader becomes their next target, will they be able to save him? Inspired by Crystal Persian with her story "Pure Of Hearts."
1. Disrupted Peace

**This is my first Super Robot Monkey Team Hyper Force Go story, so please, tell me what you think.**

* * *

**Chapter 1: Disrupted Peace**

The sun rose in the east, welcoming the new day as a warm summer breeze swept by. Clouds began to form above as the first signs of spring were seen. It has been three months since the hyper force defeated the Skeleton King and our favorite heroes sleep in peace. However, Antari kept seeing a very disturbing scene in his meditations. Waking up every hour, he would be so startled that he was drenched with sweat and the image of Chiro's agonizing pain face haunted him. The screams and pleads begging to stop repeated over and over again like a broken (or endless son) record in his head.

It was 7:30 am when Chiro, leader of the Hyper Force, suddenly woke up from a startling sound. He quickly got out of bed and raced to were the sound originated from. Whispers and banging came from the kitchen. As Chiro peeked around the corner, he saw Otto and Sprx fighting over the cooking materials.

"Back off Otto, it's mine! I found it first!" Sprx yelled.

"No, I had the idea first!" Otto retorted.

"So, I'm the better cook!"

"Nu ah! You're just jealous!"

"Me….Jealous? You wis….." Sprx trailed off when he saw Chiro enter the room.

"What are you two doing?" Chiro asked suspiciously.

(Sprx laughed nervously) "Nothing kid. Just playing around," Sprx answered.

"Right……"

"Hi ya Chiro! Where're making a surprise breakfast for everyone!" Otto said with a big smile on his face. Sprxs hit him in the head with his tail.

"Does the word 'surprise' mean anything to you?"

Otto looked down as his smile faded. "Oh ya."

"It's all right guys, I won't tell the rest of the team," Chiro assured them to make them happy once more.

"YAY! Thanks Chiro! I knew we could count on you!" Otto shrieked as he began to work again. Sprx won the spatula and began to make eggs. Chiro sluggishly walked back to his room. Still tired, he slipped on his normal cloth. Placing the communicator on his shirt, there was another huge bang from the kitchen.

"What in Shuggazoom are they doing in there now?!" Chiro thought to himself as he ran back to the kitchen. This time, he found it covered in batter and dishes all over the ground. Sprx and Otto were under the dishes as the rest of the team woke up and went behind Chiro.

"What are you two doing?!" Nova snapped. "I was in the middle of a pleasant dream when you two bird brains woke me up!"

Otto and Sprxs looked up and looked at each other.

"This is all your fault Otto! If you had just let me make breakfast, none of this would have happened!" Sprx yelled.

"It wasn't my fault!" Otto replied sadly. Chiro shook his head in disbelief.

"You two clean this mess up. In the mean time, I'll go get us breakfast," Chiro said. Then he looked at Antari. "Do you want anything?"

"If it is for a hover burger, than no. I'll make my own salad here," Antari replied. Chiro looked at the others and asked them. Of coarse they all yelled yes for hover burgers, so Chiro began to leave as a hand grabbed him. Chiro quickly looked and saw it was Antari's.

"Be careful Chiro. I've seen some unpleasant things in my meditations lately. So please, do be careful," Antari advised.

"Don't worry Antari, I'll be fine!" Chiro responded and smiled. Antari let go of him and stared back.

"Alright," he smiled and watched the kid run out. His smiled faded as he remembered what he saw the previous night. "Maybe someone should go with him," he thought to himself. But stopped as yolk hit him in the face. Antari looked at his team and saw everyone staring at him in fear.

"Oops, sorry Antari," Sprx nervously said as Antari gave him a mean look.

* * *

**Please Tell Me What You Think!**


	2. It Begins

**Chapter 2: It Begins**

While Chiro and the others were having a great day, darkness began to grow in the Savage Lands. A mad scientist, who was friends with the Alchemist, was doing his evil experiments when it went horribly wrong. His creation took possession of his frail body and built a fortress. He created his own minions by combining science and magic, creating little seeds that held a demotic spirit in them (Just like in Sailor Moon S, but different). These demonic spirits didn't work at first. Whenever they were released from the seed, they died. So he merged the ooze with it, making them stronger and withstand a lot more. Now that his minions were created and his fortress was built, he began to devise a plan to collect heart crystals until he found the purest heart on the planet.

(Now that history has caught up with us, let see what he is up to currently…..)

A dark figure sat on a black throne. His hair was as dark as space and his eyes red as blood. Fang like teeth pierced his lips, causing trickles of blood to run down his face. The scientist wore a black cap and ripped clothing. If you saw him, you would freeze in fear. However, even though he was very terrifying, he looked like the Skeleton King's brother. That is, if he had one.

A knock sounded at his door as he woke up from his slumber.

"Come in," he replied as a black figure approached him. He was covered in ancient writing and bore red eyes like his master. Bowing before the throne, he looked up to his boss.

"We are prepared for your plan to be put into action sir," the person said.

"Then I believe that there are no more problems?" The dark leader asked.

"Yes, we have solved all complications. We're just waiting for you to give the orders, King Phoboes," the heart snatcher assured him.

"Good. Then proceed with the plan," Phoboes concluded and the minion stood, bowed, and ran out. The king then looked out at the clouding sky.

"It won't be long now," He chuckled and sipped his drink. Then more chilling laughs filled the chambers of the fortress.

Elsewhere on the planet, Chiro purchases the Hover Burgers and starts home again. However, many thoughts were stirring in the young ones mind.

"I wonder why Antari was really freaked out this morning. What did he witness in his meditations?" Chiro pondered. As he passed by Ma and Pa's Arcade, he felt strange. It felt like someone was watching him contently; but when he looked around, he saw no one suspicious. He once again began to walk, but stayed alert. When he reached the robot, Chiro glanced around one more time, and then entered. As he went up his orange tube, he couldn't help but hear the monkeys arguing again.

"No! No! No! You've got it all wrong Sprx! You have to place the nanos in the nucleus! Not out with the electrons!" Gibson yelled.

"Will you stuff it? I'm trying the best I can Gibson! I'm no scientist!" Sprx snapped.

"That's a relief because if you were, you would of destroyed the whole world by now!-Stuffing the nanos in the electron field can cause a atom to split and explode with the whole planet!"

Sprx's anger grew and he threw everything down.

"You know what?! I'm going! You can finish this by yourself!" Sprx concluded and walked out of Gibson lab. Gibson just shook his head in disbelief and continued working. Sprx sat with Otto as he was building a new invention.

"I guess I have to find out why everyone is mad at each other," Chiro muttered and walked forward. "I have everyone's breakfast!" Chiro shouted as he went into the kitchen. Everyone scrambled to the kitchen excluding Antari and Gibson. It was 8:30 am by the time they finished and cleaned up their mess. Chiro went to Nova's room and knocked on her door.

"Come in!" She said as Chiro entered. "Oh hi there Chiro!"

"Hey Nova," Chiro replied in an unhappy tone. Nova felt it in his voice and sat on her bean bag. Chiro sat down next to her and sighed.

"What's wrong?" She calmly asked.

"Do you know why everyone is mad at each other?"

"That's because their bored. Don't worry; they'll be back to normal when training starts." Nova assured.

"Thanks," Chiro replied as they talked for a while before he left. From there, he went over to Antari's room and knocked. However, there was no answer.

"Antari? Are you in there?" Chiro called as he slowly opened the door. There he saw Antari trembling while in the meditating state.

"Um, - Antari? Are you alright? - Antari!" Chiro called out once more. This time, Antari opened his eyes quickly with a start.

" Antari?" Chiro questioned.

"Oh, hi there Chiro. Sorry, I didn't notice you walked in.-Come, sit down," Antari said with fear in his voice. Chiro heard it, but sat down anyway.

"What's wrong Antari? Did you see something bad again?"

(Antari sighed)" Yes, I'm afraid I don't know when or where this event will transpire though."

"Maybe I can help." Antari looked up in horror, but shook his head no.

"Are you sure I can't help?"

"I'm sure Chiro. When the time comes, we'll know what to do," Anatri said. He felt guilty for not telling Chiro that the nightmares were about him, but he knew they were for his own good. Not wanting to scare the child more, he quickly thought of an excuse to make Chiro stop asking questions.

"Training begins in five minutes. Perhaps we should prepare," Antari replied and stood up. Chiro got up and went to the door.

"See you at training!" And with that, he left. Antari let out a sigh of relief as he pondered what all the visions meant.


	3. The Threat Emerges

**The Threat Emerges**

As a new formed wind swept through Shugazoom, a little seed pod drifted towards the city. It gracefully landed on a power outlet when it began to spark. With a bright light, it formed into a monster with long black hair and cords as its arms. It slowly looked up as its red eyes glowed with an evil stare.

"Pure Hearts! - I must collect pure hearts!" It shrieked and headed towards the streets of Shugazoom.

The team gathered in the training room while Gibson prepared for the first round.

"So, who's first?" Gibson asked.

"Pick me! Pick me!" Everyone yelled out (excluding Antauri). Gibson sighed and shook his head.

"Alright then, we'll do rock paper scissors, so it'll be fair. The winner shall go first while the one in second place goes second, and so on."

"Yay! This will be fun!" Otto blurted out. The team gathered and did rock paper scissors. Since Antauri didn't play their little game, he went over to the controls. Although nobody noticed, he kept a very close eye on Chiro.

The first to get out was Sprx, then Gibson, Otto, and then finally, Chiro. The last one remaining was Nova, who shouted in victory. The rest of the team went behind the protected glass while Nova cracked her knuckles.

"Alright Antauri! Crank it up to level 5 please," she confidently asked. Nodding in agreement, the training session began. Otto and Chiro were egging her on while Sprx leaned against the wall.

"I can't believe I lost! - And to be the first one out is just embarrassing!" He muttered to himself. Gibson just glanced at him, smirked, and turned back

"It's alright Sprxy! - There's always tomorrow!" Gibson gloated.

"Don't call me that! Or I'll call you Brainiack!" Sprx retorted.

"At least my nick name demonstrates how _I'm_ the smart one."

Sprx glared at him and looked back down.

As Chiro watched Nova, he couldn't help but see that Antauri bore a frustrated expression.

"You alright Antauri?" Chiro asked. It took Antauri a minute for him to hear his leaders' voice.

"Ya, why do you ask?" Antauri questioned.

"It's just that you look really frustrated, that's all.-Is it because of what you keep seeing?"

Antauri sighed and looked up to the kid.

"It is.-And the visions are getting worse each day. I just hope that they don't come true."

"Are you sure you don't want to tell me? – I'm always here to listen if you need to talk."

"I know. – But for now, lets focus more on training." Chiro looked at Antauri with a worried expression, but gave up trying to convince him to share his visions.

"Okay," Chiro concluded and watched Nova once more.

"I'm sorry Chiro. I would tell you, but I'm afraid you'll be scared of what might happen," Antauri said to himself.

It was about 15 minutes later when Nova completed her session.

"Alright! Who's up next?" She asked wiping the sweat off her forehead with a towel.

"Me!" Chiro replied cheerfully. He ran out to the training area and waited for the simulation to begin. However, a familiar alarm went off as the team looked at each other. They nodded in understanding and headed to the communications room.


	4. No Life?

**No Life?**

Sorry i haven't updated lately. If you come up with a name to call the monster, please tell me. I'm already going to use heartsnatchers and seedlings, but if you have any other names, please tell me!=)

* * *

The team rushed to the central computer and Gibson began typing away.

"So what's the problem Gibson?" Chiro asked.

"Um……well……." Gibson stuttered. Then he gasped in complete shock and horror.

"What is it Gibson?" Antauri asked.

"By the way the scanner sees it, there are no forms of life on Shugazoom….Not one," Gibson responded as Chiro's face went pale.

"What do you mean _no life readings_?" Sprx asked. Antauri became extremely worried at this point for he saw it in one of his visions. A town in ruins with bodies everywhere; lying lifeless on the cold streets.

"What I mean is that everyone on Shugazoom has disappeared. Or worse…" Gibson was cut off.

"Don't say it! – Now let's get out here and find everyone!" Sprx encouraged as everyone exited the robot.

"My scanners indicate that there are 3 life readings near the Hover Burger stand. If we hurry, we should be able to save them," Gibson added to make everyone feel better. It didn't last long as they saw lifeless bodies lingering about. Some lay in the streets while others were in cars or sitting on benches. Chiro became speechless and lost for words.

"Who could have done something like this?" Chiro managed to question with anger rising in his voice.

"Not who, but what," Antauri corrected.

Tears streaming down his face, he asked," Why didn't the robot alert us? Wouldn't it of sensed it and made the alarm go off sooner?"

"All are valued questions Chiro. However, we won't know until we find the cause. So for now, just keep your eyes out for anyone moving," Antauri concluded as the team gazed about; speechless once more.

------------

No… Please! Let me go!" A young man cried out as his voice faded into screams. A bright light came out of his body as the monster gobbled it up.

"One down, one more to go!" It laughed and looked at the little girl who was frozen in fear.

"Now it's your turn, little girl…." It trailed off as it picked up the girl and tore into her chest. Her screams filled the air as the monkey team drew nearer.

-----------

"Do you hear that?" Chiro asked looking back at his team. They nodded as Gibson looked at his scanner.

"I'm afraid there is only one person still alive at the stand. – Lets hope we get there in time," Gibson told the team who were now fueled with anger and sorrow.

The screams subsided as a light emulated from her chest.

"It is a bit brighter than everyone else's. But unfortunately, not the one we're looking for." It said to itself as it dropped the child and ate the light. Looking around, the beast sensed only one more human left; and it was heading right towards her. She laughed "Foolish human. – I guess I'll have fun with this one……," it whispered to itself and transformed into an 18 aged woman. She was covered in dirt and ripped the dress up a little. Lying on the ground, the hyper force approached the scene.

"My scanners show someone alive down there," Gibson acknowledged.

"Keep your eyes peeled team. Any movement, report it!" Chiro ordered.

At the corner of his eye, he spotted a young woman crawling on the floor.

"There!" He yelled as he descended to the ground. Deactivating his jet-pack, he ran to the girl.

"You alright?" Chiro asked as he kneeled down to her. The rest of the team landed and stayed close to their leader.

"Are, are you that monster?" She asked frightened.

"No, it's me, Chiro with the hyper force. What happened?"

"So that's why I didn't get this kid yet! He's the leader of the hyper force! This is going to be good," she pondered.

"What happened here?" He asked.

"While I was shopping, I heard screams and yelling all over the place. No one knew where to go or what to do. We couldn't see it because it was too fast! When it took my friend, it tried to go after me. But I quickly hide under her corpse when it wasn't looking. But it hurt me gravely before then."

"Where did this monster go?"

"I, I don't know. It could be anywhere!"

Chiro stood up and helped the woman up. "Then my team and I will find it!"

Chiro assured her as he began walking away. The team soon scattered about the bodies and looked through the alleys. The woman stayed by Chiro, waiting for the right moment to attack. When a rustling came from near by bushes, Chiro quickly got in a fighting stance as Antauri watched from a distance.

"He finally turned his back to me! It's a perfect time to attack," the monster whispered as it transformed her hands into the cold deadly black ones that they were before. Antauri saw this and ran towards them.

"Chiro! It's behind you!" he yelled as Chiro slowly turned around. But before her hands touched him, Antauri kicked her away from Chiro. She landed in a fountain as she looked up quickly. The team swiftly surrounded it as it began to laugh.

"This will be fun!" It remarked as it began to transform itself back into its original state.

"Ew! That things gross looking!" Otto remarked.

"What was that you pitiful little simian?!" It shrieked.

"He said you look like you got hit by a bus!" Nova replied. The monster glared at her.

"Ya, have you looked in a mirror lately? You look like a rag doll!" Sprx added and laughed.

"You all are going to pay for that! You filthy MONKEYS!!!!!" The monster yelled and jumped up. She looked around to see the green one (Otto), completely off guard.

"WOW! She can jump high!" Otto bursted out.

The monster's eye gleamed and she quickly disappeared. The whole team gasped and looked around.

"Where did she go?" Chiro asked.

"I don't know, but stay alert," Antauri replied as Otto looked confused. Then he heard someone whisper," Behind you," and he felt pain rush down his body as the beast hit Otto with an energy blast. She then kicked him into a building, knocking him unconscious.

"Otto!" They all yelled as their fiery eyes gazed upon the one behind it. The seedling smiled, and rushed to Nova. Seeing her coming, Nova transformed her hands into fists.

"Boom Boom Wake Up!" She hollered as she hit her target. The seedling flew back, but regained her balance. The monster once again laughed and disappeared once more. This time, Antauri began to feel the movements of the beast and traced it to Nova. However, it was too late. Nova went flying towards the fountain, but Chiro caught her. The seedling hissed and looked back at the rest of the monkeys.

"She's too fast to predict!" Gibson brought up.

"Maybe not," Antauri muttered as Sprx grew angry.

"Nobody does that to Nova and gets away with it!" Sprx yelled and charged at the ugly being. Antauri watched closely and studied her movements. She began to get into a certain position that he recognized the seedling go in before.

"Sprx! Invade from the bottom! She's completely off balance there!" Antauri yelled out as Sprx began his attack.

"Magno Bolt Laser!" He yelled as his attack hit the monster. She shrieked in pain and fell to the ground.

"Thanks for the tip Antauri!" Sprx called back. The monster began to get up again, but Chiro wanted to end it before anyone else got hurt.

"Monkey Fu!" He yelled as his energy beam hit the seedling. Crying out in pain, it slowly disintegrated and disappeared.

"Ya!" Chiro yelled out. But a light soon filled the air around them and they shielded their eyes.

* * *

**Please review!**


	5. The Search Is On!

**The Search is On!**

"What's that light?!" Chiro shouted still shielding his eyes.

"I'm not sure, but whatever it is, it's coming from that monster!" Gibson replied.

"Oh goody! - More trouble," Sprx sarcastically remarked.

The light began to fade away as the team uncovered their eyes and looked around. There they got a glimpse of little calming lights going into everyone's bodies. Antauri caught a glimpse of what one _**really**_ looked like. Four purple crystals around a shinning orb of light.

Everyone was just flabbergasted as they heard moans and groans sounding off behind them. Quickly turning around, they saw that the citizens of Shugazoom were waking up. Whispers and crying soon filled the air as some mourned over those they believed were dead. However, everyone soon woke up within the next 10 to 15 minutes. The Hyper Force was more confused than ever. Asking a couple of people what had transpired, the same story applied.

"We were just shopping and going on with our business when all of a sudden, we heard screams coming from the alley way. People began to fall on the street while others looked around for the danger. But we never saw anything. The only thing we heard was a cold and weird voice yelling Pure Hearts! I must collect Pure Hearts! Then I felt a pain unlike anything I've never felt before. It was unimaginable! I felt myself giving in; and that's when everything went cold and black."

Without knowing what else they could do, they left. Entering the robot, they all sat in their seats in the communications room. Gibson began conducting research about pure hearts while the others conversed about the whole conspiracy.

"What do you think went on in the city?" Chiro asked his team.

"Maybe the monster is from space and came here to eat everyone's brains!" Otto blurted out. The team just glared at him.

"Be serious Otto!" Nova yelled to Otto.

"Well, what do you think that light was then?" Sprx asked.

Antauri thought for a moment. "What ever that creature was, it took the sole right out of the people. - I sensed life in the people, but I did feel even more life in the light that left the beasts body."

"I do believe you're close Antauri. – The index revealed that Pure Hearts are connected to all living things. However, it doesn't say anything else. I'll have to conduct a more thorough search; but so far, I'm not having any luck on finding any more info," Gibson announced.

"So let me get this straight. Everyone has a 'Pure Heart' inside them?" Sprx asked.

"By this information, yes."

"So even _**we**_ have Pure Hearts?"

"I do believe so."

"So we have 2 hearts?"

"I don't know Sprx! I only have limited information and to me, this is scientifically impossible! – Now please, be quiet!"

Chiro, who was looking down in deep thought stood up and looked up at his team. "There's nothing we can do to help until Gibson finds out more about these heart crystals. However, I think we should scout the city for any more of those monsters. – Everyone will have a scanner and search any strange anomalies. If you come across any, alert the team immediately," Chiro ordered.

"But what if a monster gets our pure heart before we can warn the others?" Nova asked. Chiro turned to Gibson.

"Gibson, can you monitor everyone's communication while you conduct your research?"

"Yes. It should be easy enough."

"Then contact everyone immediately if someone's communication signal disappears."

"Affirmative."

"Chiro, do you believe this is the wisest thing to do? – Splitting up makes us weaker than we are together," Antauri added.

"I don't see any other way Antauri. We can't disengage the robot because Gibson needs the computer. Unless you have another way to make sure the city doesn't have any more intruders, please tell me," Chiro replied frustrated. Antauri sighed, closed his eyes, and looked to the floor.

"I just don't think we should go by ourselves in different locations of the city. We barley defeated one of those monsters together! Not to mention how fast it was!" Antauri looked up. "I just don't think it would be wise if we split up while searching for an enemy like this."

Chiro sighed in realization. "You're right. But I can't just sit here while everyone on Shugazoom loses their lives."

"We don't have to. Instead of splitting up, we could all go as one group or in pairs of at least two."

"But without Gibson, the pairs will be uneven."

"That's why I said the groups would be made of at least 2. Nova and Otto will go scout the east side of the city while you, me, and Sprx go and patrol the west side of the city."

"Alright. It is a good compromise. – But I think Nova should go with you while Otto and Sprx come with me."

Antauri looked down in deep thought. "_I can't seem too over protective unless the team will make me tell them what I've seen." _He looked up to Chiro. "Alright."

Chiro smiled and then looked back at his team. "Does everyone know what they're supposed to do?" Chiro asked as the team nodded. "Then Hyper Force, Go!" And with that, they all headed out (excluding Gibson).


	6. Target Located

**Target Located**

The news of the fallen heat snatcher soon reached King Phoboes. Anger swelled up within him as he threw his goblet against the stone wall with such force that it broke. The sound of shattering glass filled the air as his minions knew that their king was upset.

"Roger!" His cold and eerie voice echoed. All the followers cowered down in fear as the one named Roger gulped and slowly entered the throne room.

"Y-yes my lord?" He stuttered.

"You've failed me in choosing a monster worthy enough to capture pure hearts. I'm very disappointed in you."

"I'm sorry sir."

"– Now tell me, what punishments do you and other people receive for failing me?"

This made Roger tremble with fear. "D-death, sir."

"Do you even know who destroyed the last heart snatcher?" King Phoboes asked suspiciously.

"Yes my lord; we know exactly who did it. It was a human and five cybernetic monkeys."

"A human? I clearly remember you reporting to me that everyone was delt with. - Who might this _human_ be?"

"This boy was too strong sir. He wasn't…."

"A boy?!" Phoboes interrupted with anger swelling up in his voice.

"Unfortunately, yes. We didn't detect this boy sooner because he was with five monkeys; as I said before."

This seemed to have King Phoboes very interested. "A boy and five cybernetic robots, eh? That sounds like the hyper force. – No wonder why we suffered a loss. The chosen one _has _exceeded both Skeleton Kings and my own expectations. – Do you remember what he looked like?"

"I only caught a glimpse of him, but I remember him clearly."

"Good. – I think you have found your new prey then."

"You think this kid has the purest heart in this galaxy?"

"I know he does. Now listen to me carefully. I want both his pure heart and his body."

"H-his body?"

"Yes. Once we have his pure heart, we can use his body and make it fight on our side. – Now go, and don't disappoint me again or I won't let you off this easily again."

"I understand sir. It shall be done." And with that, Roger left trying to catch his breathe. King Phoboes laughed as he looked out the window again.

"You won't get away from me, boy!"


	7. Visions Revealed

**Visions Revealed**

"Are you okay Antauri? You've looked really distracted the past few days now. – Is there something you want to talk about?" Nova asked as they began scouting their designated area. She didn't want to bother Antauri about what was making him depressed and distant, but she couldn't bear to see her 2nd in command like this. He was her brother, and she cared a lot about him.

Antauri looked up to her and sighed. "It seems I 'm not doing a very good job at keeping a secret…." Antauri trailed off as he looked around to make sure no one was listening. "Even Chiro knew something was eating away at me. However, what I encountered in my meditations should not be mentioned to him; understood?" He whispered to Nova in such a serious tone that it made her fur crawl all over. She just nodded in agreement, being lost for words. "I haven't told anyone else what I've seen in my meditations because I feared it would make everyone worry about Chiro so much, he would feel over protected. – Even now I feel the same way, but need at least one more person to know about it. Do you promise not to speak a word to the rest of the team about what I've seen?" Antauri asked with a stern voice.

"You have my word Antauri," Nova said with confidence in her voice. This made Antauri relieved. _'Now I can finally get this off my conscious. It's great that someone else will know and help me prevent what will or might transpire._' Antauri thought to himself.

----------

"I wonder what has Antauri on edge. He seems more paranoid then usual. – Hey kid! Do you happen to know what's up with him?" Sprx asked.

Chiro was lost in thought about everything that was going on that he didn't hear Sprx. He was worried about the citizens getting hurt and the well-fare of his team. He wanted to protect the city, but he feared what might happen if one of the monsters caught Antauri and Nova. The young hero also pondered what the Pure Hearts really were and why would these new foes want them.

"Hey Chiro! Shugazoom to Chiro! Are you listening?!" Sprx yelled. This time, his words reached Chiro and took him out of his thoughts.

"Hmm?" Chiro responded.

"Oh, Sprx and I were just wondering if you knew what was wrong with Antauri; that's all,' Otto replied stepping in front of Sprx.

"I don't really know. – What I do know is that he is disturbed by his meditations, but that's all," Chiro said with Otto and Sprx looking at each other.

"Maybe we should make him something when we get back! – I know! We should make him a surprise dinner!" Otto yelled out.

"Once again, does the word 'surprise' mean anything to you?! – You're not supposed to tell anyone what you're going to do; hence, the 'surprise' part," Sprx teased. Otto obviously ignored the comment as he quickly said, "Or, or maybe we should bake him cookies! – No wait, he doesn't eat sugar."

This made Chiro laugh as he remembered what happened that morning. "Maybe we should make it together this time and **not **fight over the cooking materials," Chiro snorted as he continued to laugh. Sprx smirked and crossed his arms.

"That sounds like a good idea!" Otto happily said.

"But first, we have to search for any anomalies, alright?" Chiro retorted as he looked back at the scanner.

"Okay!"

"According to the scanner, everything seems to be okay," Chiro reported to Sprx and Otto.

"Does that mean we can go cook?"

"It means we can go cook," Chiro laughed as the three turned around and headed back for the robot. However, unknown to them, a certain creature lurked in the alley way; waiting for the perfect time to attack.

--------

"During my meditations throughout the past few weeks, I've been seeing horrible visions. The first one was about a fortress in the savage lands that reeked with an evil stench. I felt a presence that made my skin crawl as I saw tall, skinny black creatures everywhere. They had red writing on their arms that I didn't understand and piercing red eyes. One glimpse of them and your blood would freeze over. No life was present in them; that's for sure. Then, the next week, I saw the city piled with bodies everywhere; just like we saw today. However, this was way worse. The city was in ruins, the sky was red as blood, and there was no one alive; not even us." Nova gasped at this thought. "Every day, the visions just got worse. The one that really took me over the edge was when I saw Chiro backed up in a corner with a monster in front of him. It pinned him to the wall and then…then…." Antauri trailed off as he looked down.

"Then what?" Nova asked with her curiosity rising.

"It phased its hand into Chiro's chest," Antauri whispered even lower with anger swelling up in his voice "That's when his screams began haunting me. It sounded like he was being killed very slowly. – And his skin; it went so pale that one could say it was pure white." Antauri stopped walking and clenched his fists. Nova stopped with him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "After the beast we encountered earlier, I think Chiro will be attacked real soon. – I don't want to see him like that again." Nova stared at him with her eyes watering up.

"Don't worry. I won't let any of those creatures touch him! You have my word!" Nova quickly responded as Antauri looked up to her.

"Thanks Nova," Antauri softly said as they began to walk once more. Antauri looked at the scanner and saw no anomalies on there.

"Lets get back to the rest of the team; nothing seems wrong on our end." Both Nova and Antauri turned around and headed back for the robot.


	8. Attacked

**Attacked**

"So this is the kid who possesses the purist heart crystal…." The monster in the alley way quietly whispered to itself. "Where are the other 3 monkeys? - Oh well, - This will be easier than I thought." It concluded as it sank deeper in the shadows and moved to another alley. Otto was talking about a new invention he made when Chiro felt an eerie presence coming from behind them. He slowly stopped and stared at his surroundings. Otto and Sprx continued walking and by the time they finally noticed their leaders' disappearance, they looked back at Chiro.

"Are you coming or what kid?" Sprx called to Chiro.

"Ya," Chiro replied as he turned around. At the corner of his eye, he saw movement in the alley and darted towards it. Sprx and Otto quickly knew something was wrong and rushed to see where Chiro was going.

"Hold on kid!" Sprx yelled.

"Ya! Wait for us!" Otto yelled as well. But Chiro ignored them and ran into the alley way to find a dead end. No one or nothing was there.

"Okay, I know I saw something in here!" Chiro muttered.

So quietly and swiftly, the hatchling appeared behind Chiro. A smirk appeared on her face as she slashed Chiro's back; causing him to hit the wall.

Sprx and Otto finally arrived to see the scene. They transformed their hands into their weapons as the monster turned around.

"Get away from him you witch!" Sprx yelled; anger rising in his voice. The beast just gave another evil smirk and quickly disappeared. Otto and Sprx looked around for any movement; but were unsuccessful as it appeared behind them. It knocked both of them into the wall next to Chiro. She began laughing with a cold smile again as she walked slowly towards her target.

------

"Hmm……Very interesting," Gibson said to himself as he read an article from a planet called Earth. "So they had a problem with Heart Snatchers too…."Gibson's thought trailed off as an alarm went off. He quickly switched the screen to see Chiro's communication's signal off line. "I've got to tell the team!" Gibson quickly switched his communicator on. "Gibson to Antauri, do you read me?"

------

"Well, there are……..Ugh!" Antauri was stopped as he fell to his knees. Nova bent down with him and tried asking what was wrong.

"It's…Chir….." He was cut off by Gibson.

"Gibson to Antauri, do you read me?"

"Yes, what's wrong?" Antauri asked with worry evident in his voice.

"Chiro's communication signal has disappeared….." Gibson trailed off as another alarm could be heard in the back ground.

"Sprx and Otto's communication signals are very low. They're in trouble!"

"Alright, we'll find them. Stay in the lab and continue your research."

"Affirmative"

"Antauri out." Nova helped Antauri up and both of them headed to where Chiro, Otto, and Sprx were at.

-------

"My master said it would be very hard to get your pure heart crystal; but I don't know what he was thinking." The black creature said as she ascended forward. Sprx struggled to get up, but he managed to face his enemy when the lady got close to them.

"No way are we letting you get our pure hearts!" Sprx yelled as he transformed his hands back into magnets. "Magno Bolt Laser!" Sprx yelled as he shot his attack at the monster. The walls and trash cans around her began to stick to her until a ball of metal took her place. Otto finally woke up and rushed to Chiro's side.

"Hey Chiro, you alright?" Otto asked. Chiro began to open his eyes.

"Ya, she snuck up on me, that's all." With that statement, he slowly stood up with the help of the wall. Otto gasped as he saw a trail of blood appearing on the smooth surface.

"You're bleeding!" Otto said.

"It's nothing, she just scratched…."He was cut off by the sound of metal exploding. The three warriors looked ahead of them to see the monster standing there. And let me tell you, she was **NOT** happy at all!

"You…….FILTHY MONKEY! You'll pay for that!" She screeched and began to form an energy ball.

"Okay then, when you get home, send me the bill!" Sprx replied as he got prepared to deflect it back at her when the monster screeched. She held on the back of her head as Sprx looked around to see what happened. There he saw Chiro forming another Chiro Spearo and throw it at her neck. The heart snatcher was blown back and was now on the floor; apparently dazed.

"Nice shot kid! – I owe ya one!" Sprx called to Chiro as he saw his leader smile back at him.

"Now we have to get out of her before she gets back up!" Chiro added as he began to run out of the alley. Sprx and Otto followed their leader's example, but stopped to see the monster quickly get to her feet.

"Look out!" Sprx called to Chiro, but it was too late. She had him pinned to the wall.

"I'll end this right now!" It screeched as it transformed its hand into a deadly purplish blackish color.

"Let him go!" Both Sprx and Otto yelled as they rushed to attack. But the monster used her energy and levitated them in the air and threw them at the ground hard (Like the Skeleton King did to Chiro).

Chiro struggled to get free, but it was useless. As he felt the hand touch his skin, he felt extremely cold. It was as if his very sole was trembling. His eyes shut tight as she was just about to phase her hand into his chest. He couldn't feel anything or hear anything. But something did break the silence.

"Monkey Mind Scream!" Chiro's eyes flew opened as he fell to the ground. He heard the black cloaked monster scream as it flew back and Antauri gracefully landed.

"Lady Tomahawk!" (Don't know how to spell her attack, sorry.) Another familiar voice sounded. Another wave of attack was unleashed by the monster as he saw Nova land next to Antauri.

Seeing the monster was twitching, Chiro knew it was going to attack again. Slowly standing up because of his injured back, he summoned the power primate.

"Monkey Fu!" He yelled as his last attack hit the monster. The heart snatcher slowly dissolved as Chiro slumped against the wall again. When everyone knew it was gone, Antauri went over to Chiro while Nova went to Otto and Sprx.

"You alright Chiro?" Antauri asked.

"Ya, thanks to you," Chiro responded.

"What happened exactly?"

"I'll fill you in later. Right now, we should get back to the robot," Chiro ordered.

Nova rebutted Otto's and Sprx's Systems as they sat up; rubbing their heads.

"What hit me?" Otto asked.

"That weird black cloaked thing, remember?" Sprx remarked.

"Oh ya. – You alright Chiro? Sorry we couldn't help." Otto hollered to Chiro.

"It's alright, I'm fine. – You tried, and that's what counts!" Chiro added as he gave them a thumps up. Otto smiled, but it quickly disappeared as he ran to Chiro.

"How's your back?"

"My back? – Oh, it's fine! Nothing to worry about!" Chiro said as he laughed nervously.

"Are you sure?" Antauri questioned.

"Yes! I'm perfectly….OW!" Chiro yelled as he placed a hand on his stomach.

"Chiro….." Nova warned him. He knew she would force him to tell the truth, so he sighed.

"It hurts," Chiro muttered. Everyone laughed except for Antauri. Nova soon saw the concerned face that Antauri had and stopped immediately. She knew that his vision of Chiro yelling looked just like what they saw when they arrived; Chiro pinned to the wall by a black cloaked monster.

"Gibson to Antauri, do you read me?" Antauri's communicator sounded off.

"Yes, what is it?" Antauri asked curiously.

"Did you find Chiro and the others?"

"Yep, we got here just in time. But they are injured."

"In that case, I think you should come back to the robot. – I have news about our enemy."

"Alright, we're on our way."

"Gibson out." And with that, everyone headed back to the robot.

"You may have won this round monkey team; but next time, I will get the boy," Roger quietly laughed to himself as he pulled out a seed from his pocket. It slowly drifted in the light breeze; following the monkey team unnoticed.


	9. Nightmares Come True

**Nightmare's Come True**

"There you go, all finished," Gibson said as he finished tying up Chiro's bandages. Chiro sighed in relief and stood up; but a sharp pain that went through his back made him stumble forward. Antauri saw this and used his telekinesis to stop the falling child and placed him back on the sick bay bench.

"Maybe you should stay here and rest. Those scratches are deeper than you may think," Antauri advised Chiro.

"Indeed they are. Any sudden movements and the wounds will break open. – I'm afraid you'll have to rest the next few days so they can heal," Gibson informed Chiro.

"But what about the monsters? They want to take everyone's pure hearts! And I just can't sit here and do nothing about it!" Chiro replied in an angry tone. Antauri floated to Chiro and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You can't do anything with wounds like that. The beast's claws were designed to kill its prey with its venomous claws. Fortunately, you barley got hit. – Your body needs time to heal, or you will be an easy target for our new enemies." Antauri said. Chiro looked down angrily.

"I still can't sit here while you and all my friends on Shugazoom get attacked by these monsters."

"You don't have too."

"Ya! You can always help Gibson find information about those heart thingy's!" Otto added as he looked towards Gibson.

"I do need help conducting this research. I would gladly accept your help."

Chiro sighed. "I guess it's better than doing nothing. - Didn't you say you found information about the pure hearts?" Chiro quickly asked.

"Yes; indeed I did," Gibson replied and cleared his throat. "We aren't the first planet to be terrorized by this menace. In fact, there is a planet called Earth that had the same problem. Except, individuals were picked out using computers. If you had any signs of having a good pure heart, then you would be targeted.'

"Did you find any images of what one looked like?"

"No. No one was able to get a clear view of what one really looked like. – I still don't know how they solved this dilemma."

"Well, you and Chiro will have to keep researching tomorrow than. For now, we should all get some sleep," Antauri acknowledged as everyone nodded except Chiro. He was still deep in thought; but soon got up and slowly headed towards his room. Antauri saw Chiro struggling, so he helped Chiro get to bed. While he waited for his leader to fall asleep, he began meditating. Once Antauri knew for sure that Chiro was asleep, he stopped meditating and approached the sleeping child. Seeing his hair was covering his face, Antauri cautiously brushed the strains of hair out of the way. _'Don't worry Chiro, I won't let anyone or anything else hurt you.'_ Antauri promised to himself before retiring to his own room.

------

It was about 1:30am and everyone was asleep peacefully except for a young wounded leader in his room. He was having a nightmare that seemed very familiar of what had happened the day before. He was pinned to the wall of his room by one of the heart snatchers as her hand reached towards his chest. He was unable to use his powers because of the injures he received. Even if he did use them, they would do more harm to him than the monster. As soon as the monster pushed her hand within him, he woke up immediately. Chiro sat up ignoring the pain in his back. He was covered in sweat and his eyes filled with fear. The pain he felt when the monster phased her hand into Chiro still lingering in his mind. Without realizing it, he was breathing heavily and had his hand on his heart. When he caught his breath, he sighed in relief. "It was just a nightmare," he whispered.

"A nightmare that's going to come true!" A voice sounded off as Chiro quickly faced a dark corner of his room. There he saw one of the heart snatchers come out of the dark and approach him. Chiro jumped up, but the pain in is back made him fall back down immediately.

"It seems like the scratches Nelda gave you worked marvelously," it laughed with its cold eerie voice. Chiro tried to stand back up, but the pain was too much. The monster grabbed Chiro and banged him against the wall. He tried to reach his communicator, but the cloaked figure knocked it off his shirt.

"Your mine! She yelled as she phased her hand into Chiro. His agonizing screams filled the robot and awakened the monkey team. As they rush to their leaders' room, the monster blocked the door so no one can open it.

"No one can get through there now…." She trialed off as she phased her hand into Chiro once more. As Chiro's screams went louder, his team got closer to his room.

Cliff hanger, sorry! I couldn't help it! =)


	10. The Pure Heart Crystal

**The Pure Heart Crystal **

"Chiro!" Antauri yelled as he arrived at the door. He tried to open it, but it was jammed. The rest of the team had Chiro's door in their sights when they saw Antauri phase through the door.

"Why didn't he just open it?" Nova asked as Sprx attempted to enter.

"I think I know why!" Sprx yelled over Chiro's agonizing voice.

"It sounds like he's dying," Nova whispered looking more worried than anyone has ever seen before.

"Get out of the way!" Gibson quickly said as the team moved. "Laser Crisscross!" He yelled as he attacked the door; but it didn't make a dent.

------

As soon as Antauri got into Chiro's room, he saw a sight that made him extremely angry and horrified. He was extremely mad because you could tell that Chiro was in agonizing pain by his screams and he was horrified because he saw the same thing in his meditations except; they were in a alley. Shaking the emotions off, he was just about to attack the creature when a blinding light filled the room. Antauri quickly covered his eyes as he heard the Heart Snatcher screech in pain as well. The door behind Antauri finally smashed opened as the rest of the team immediately shielded their eyes.

"Wh- what's going on?" Nova asked loudly.

"The monster must have pulled Chiro's heart crystal out!" Gibson quickly replied.

"Oh goody, more trouble," Sprx remarked when Chiro's screams faded and the light began to dim. Everyone, including the heart snatcher, looked up with eyes widening to see four crystal shards surrounding a rather large orb of blinding light. It had really small shards towards the orb part that casted little rainbows on the walls (It looked a lot like Serena's from Sailor Moon. The rainbow on the walls part I thought of by reflecting the light of my necklace on the wall).

"This……this is the purest heart I have ever seen before!" The monster stuttered.

Chiro's skin turned into a pure white color and his eyes went soleless before they closed. "Antauri," He muttered as his lifeless body slid down the wall. If you were to see Chiro, you would think he was dead. Antauri trembled in fear and anger as he heard Chiro utter his name and sensed only a spec of life left in his close friend.

The heart snatcher soon remembered her task and grabbed the crystal. Antauri clutched his hands into fists before he began his head on attack. The beast was too busy admiring the crystal and didn't notice Antauri jump above her.

"Core Disrupter!" He yelled as he slashed the beast's hands off. The crystal was still in the clutches of the monsters hands as it began to fall. The monster screamed in pain but fear soon filled her emotions as she saw the crystal nearing the floor.

"Don't let it shatter!" She yelled and looked at Antauri. He quickly caught the hands and slowly removed Chiro's pure heart from the arms. The hatching sighed quietly. _'If that crystal broke, I would be long gone!'_ She said to herself and then took the opportunity of catching Antauri off guard. The rest of the team soon snapped out of their state and rushed to Antauri's aid.

"Laser Chariot!" Otto yelled as he tried to slice the monster in half. Seeing him at the last minute, she quickly moved out of the way. However, she wasn't in the clearing as Nova and Sprx attacked her at the same time.

"Lady Tomahawk!" Nova attacked.

"Magno Bolt Laser!" Sprx added as the monster was hit and fell to the floor. Gibson quickly used one of his attacks to pin the monster to the floor. She was too weak to free herself, so she just let her self lay there. The team ran to Chiro while Sprx kept an eye on their prisoner.

"Chiro, are you okay?" Nova asked and extended her hand out. Once she touched Chiro, she quickly pulled her hand back.

"He's as cold as ice!" She yelled out worriedly.

"Gibson, does he have a pulse?" Antauri asked. Gibson quickly grabbed Chiro's arm and ignored the coldness.

"It doesn't look good. – Chiro has a pulse, but it's so slow he can die at any moment." Gibson replied grimly. The monkey team went dead silent until Antauri remembered something.

"The pure hearts are attached to every living thing; right?' He questioned Gibson.

"Yes."

"Do you remember the bright lights that went into everyone's' bodies yesterday?" Gibson smiled once he heard this.

"Your right! It was right after we killed that monster! The crystals didn't have anywhere to go so they drifted back into their bodies."

Antauri slowly released the crystal. It stayed in the air for a moment until it slowly went to Chiro's body and disappeared in his chest. Chiro began to groan a little as his skin turned back into its pinkish color. Gibson felt his hand get warmer and the pulse came back; but it was still slower than normal. Everyone sighed in relief as Antauri looked back at the monster. He then walked up to her as she turned away.

"We have questions for you. – And if you don't answer them all, we will kill you," Antauri said as the heart snatcher tried to break free. But it was useless.

"Who do you work for?"

"Why would I tell you?! - Even if I did tell you and you set me free, the king would have me destroyed."

"Sounds like this 'King' isn't a very good one."

"Don't talk about Phoboes like that!" She yelled but quickly shut her mouth afterwards.

"Phoboes? – And were is this Phoboes?"

"None of your business you filthy simian! – But since your going to die at his hand anyway, I'll tell you what he's after."

"And what's that?"

"He's after pure hearts! – That's what!"

"For what?"

"A prophecy."

"A prophecy?"

"A Prophecy you all will help with! – Especially that boy!" She began to laugh evilly as she began to fade away. Before Antauri could ask anymore questions, the monster was dead. He sighed and looked back at his team to see fear and curiosity in all their faces.

I'm really excited about the next chapter, so I'll write the next chapter tomorrow! (June 26, 2009)


	11. Many Unanswered Questions

**Many Unanswered Questions **

Antauri walked over to the rest of his team and looked at Chiro. He sensed life in Chiro once more, but his aura was all tangled up with different emotions. He had mainly two emotions that were plainly visible; curiosity and anger. However, one emotion that was making up more than half of his aura made Antauri's worry rise; fear. If the fear was of being taken by the creature or having his team hurt because of him was unknown to him.

"I think we should let him rest in the sickbay for awhile. That way, we can keep him monitored for any sudden changes that we should be concerned about." Gibson suggested.

Antauri snapped out of his thoughts to see everyone looking at him. "Is his pulse still slow?"

"It's a bit better, but it's still slower than usual."

"Alright then, lets take him to the sick bay," Antauri concluded as Sprx and Otto activated their jet packs and lifted Chiro up. They then headed to the sickbay with Gibson following close behind. Nova stayed with Antauri because she knew he needed to talk to someone.

"What happened to Chiro………It's what you saw in your visions, isn't it?' Nova asked. Antauri looked down and sighed.

"Unfortunately, yes. – It was the same haunting screams and same scene."

"Except it took place in his room and not outside."

Antauri looked up. "Yes, that's the only difference. – I'm still curious what that monster meant by All of us will help for fill the prophecy, especially Chiro."

"I'm sure she was just crazy. – I mean, didn't you see how she ignored her pain and had more concern about the Heart Crystal?!"

"It could have been for a good reason."

"Your right, but still, she was obsessed with that thing!"

"We better get to the sick bay and discuss this event with the rest of the team." Antauri said as he and Nova headed towards the sick bay.

------

"Is your plan going accordingly?" Phoboes asked as Roger entered the throne room.

"Yes. – The chosen one has received the scratches that paralyze him when a heart snatcher is near and the hyper force still doesn't know we're after Chiro." Roger replied with an evil grin.

"Good. – Now, when do you plan to take the boy and his Pure Heart?"

"I plan to do that when he is alone with no monkeys in sight."

"Go on then, proceed with your plan."

"Thank you, my lord," Roger concluded as he left for the city.

------

"Has he awakened yet?" Antauri asked as he and Nova entered the room.

"No, but I don't expect him to until tomorrow night at the latest." Gibson reported.

"Why isn't he waking up any earlier? – Remember all the citizens in Shugazoom? They woke up within the next 10 to 15 minutes!" Sprx asked in a concerned and angry tone.

"I don't know why Sprx! The computers show that with the rate Chiro is recovering, he should wake up within the next day or two! Why are you always asking why?!"

"It could be because Chiro got those scratches on his back!" Otto pointed out.

"It could be. – That injury really drains Chiro's energy as it tries to heal itself. Since all his energy is focused there, he might not be strong enough to awaken. – However, there is one question I still don't understand the answer to." Gibson said looking at Antauri.

"And what might that be?" Antauri asked.

"Why didn't the robot warn us of the intruder?"

This made everyone think for a minute. Every time someone would try to answer the question, they would remember something that made them have to think again.

"The robot's scanners didn't pick up the first time these monster attacked either," Antauri informed the rest of the team.

"And when we were scouting the city, our scanner didn't pick up the heart snatcher in the alley," Sprx added.

"And our scanner didn't even pick up any anomalies when Antauri and I entered the alley either. – We saw the monster, but the scanner didn't seem to." Nova stated as Antauri shook his head in agreement.

"Do you think these monsters can hide their presences from our scanners?" Gibson asked.

"They would need some high tech device to counter act our scanner devices. But that requires a lot of room to build something like that!" Otto replied.

Antauri suddenly remembered seeing a fortress in the Savage Lands. "Like a fortress in the Savage Lands?" Antauri asked.

"That should be big enough," Otto replied. "But what made you think of that?"

"Just a guess. – In any case, we should get some sleep so we will be ready to search for this menace tomorrow." Antauri ordered as the team began filing out except Gibson and Antauri.

"I'll stay with Chiro Gibson. You can go ahead and get some sleep."

"Are you sure? You're going to need the energy."

"I'm sure. Besides, I would barely sleep anyway. – If anything changes in Chiro's biosigns, I'll inform you."

"Thanks; see you in the morning," Gibson said as he walked to his own room.

Antauri hovered up next to Chiro and then began to meditate. He didn't go into a deep meditation because he wanted to keep an eye on Chiro._ 'I'm sorry I couldn't prevent you from feeling this pain. – But I promise I won't let you down in protecting the city and the rest of the team.' _Antauri said to himself as he stroked Chiro's hair. _'Why am I feeling this way? Is it because Chiro feels the same way towards me? – Or is it because of a deeper connection?'_ Antauri pondered deep on this thought. He never thought about seeing Chiro as a son. But the more Antauri thought about it, the more he thought of Chiro as his own.


	12. Awakened

**Awakened**

The night went on as if nothing ever happened. The monkeys were peacefully sleeping in their rooms besides Antauri; who was meditating in the sick bay.

The sun crawled up in the sky as shadows danced around on the streets and buildings. The citizens were minding their own business and having a peaceful day. However, unknown to them, they were all going to become a distraction so Roger could go and capture his prey, Chiro.

It was around 7:00am by the time Gibson woke up and went to the sick bay. There he saw Antauri meditating and Chiro still asleep. Walking over to the computer to see if there was any changes in Chiro's recovery, Antauri came out of his mediating state.

"Why good morning Gibson," Antauri said quietly so he wouldn't wake up the rest of the team.

"Good morning to you too Antauri. – Was there any changes in Chiro's state?'

"Unfortunately, no."

"That's what I thought." Gibson sighed. "I guess he'll awaken tomorrow then." Gibson said with worry evident in his voice.

"Don't worry, Chiro will be fine. Just wait and see." Gibson smiled as he began typing things into the computer. Nova and Sprx soon woke up and went into the sickbay as well.

"Any news on Chiro?" Nova asked.

"He's still in the critical state, but he should awaken tomorrow."

"I thought you said he would be awake by tonight!" Sprx retorted worriedly.

"No, I said at the latest."

"Isn't that the same thing?" Sprx asked again.

"No. Now will you please stay quiet! Chiro needs his rest!"

"Whatever," Sprx said as he crossed his arms. He wasn't trying to be angry, but he was worried about Chiro.

"We better go and get something to eat…." Antauri trailed off as a big crash came from the kitchen. The team rushed to the scene and quietly entered; alert for anything. They all sighed once they saw it was Otto attempting to cook again.

"What are you doing!?" Nova asked trying to control her anger. "You made us think you were another intruder!"

Otto laughed nervously. "Sorry," Otto responded looking sad.

Antauri went to Otto and helped him up. "Are you alright?"

"Ya, I just tripped over this heavy chair. – But breakfast is done!" Otto suddenly bursted out as he pointed to the table.

"You actually managed to cook something?! Your surprise almost worked if it wasn't for that chair you were holding." Sprx complemented.

"I know! Chiro gave me some tips on how to keep the breakfast a secret yesterday! – Too bad he can't join us," Otto said getting a little disappointed. "Oh well! At least I tried!" Otto happily said and skipped off. The rest of the team went to the table and began eating.

Not wanting to leave Chiro's side in case another monster broke into the robot, Antauri took his food into the sickbay. There he ate while keeping an eye on his 'son'.

It was about five minutes later when Antauri left to place his dishes in the sink and then returned to the sickbay. As he began to meditate again, he felt a pull within the power primate. He quickly tried to find the cause, but kept getting the sense that something or someone was doing it in the sickbay. Antauri quickly opened his eyes to feel the power primate concentrating on Chiro. Glancing at the computer to see if there were any changes, he saw that Chiro was beginning to heal quickly. _'Of course! Chiro's power primate healing abilities!'_ He thought to himself. Chiro began to move around a bit by moving his fingers and his head. By the way his eyelids twitched, he knew Chiro was trying to wake up. Still not wanting to leave his side, Antauri quickly activated his communicator.

"Chiro is showing signs of waking up, you all should come quickly." Antauri advised the team. Everyone looked at each other in disbelieve, but quickly jumped up and ran to the sickbay. There they saw Chiro moving around, confirming what Antauri reported.

Gibson ran to the computer to see his biosigns returning to normal.

"How can this be?" Gibson whispered still in shock.

"I believe the power primate is behind this," Antauri replied as moans and groans came from Chiro. Huddling around their leader, Chiro's eyes slowly opened. His vision was extremely blurry and unfocused at first. However, within the next minute, his vision finally returned and saw his team hovering over him. He tried to speak, but he coughed instead. Chiro then felt five pairs of robotic arms around his waist.

"We were so worried!" Nova said as the team stopped hugging Chiro.

"Ya kid! You scared the living daylights out of us! – Never do that again!" Sprx added.

"Are you feeling better?" Gibson asked.

Antauri just smiled and stared at Chiro in relief.

"…..Fals…..Feels like my heart was ripped right outta me," Chiro struggled to whisper as one of his eyes closed, but opened again. Everyone could tell he was still in a lot of pain, but tried to hide their worried faces.

Chiro attempted to sit up, but felt his team push him back down.

"No offense Chiro, but your in no condition to be walking or moving around yet." Gibson quickly announced.

"But…..I'm…..I'm fine," Chiro said with his strength slowly returning.

"You should listen to Gibson Chiro. You need rest in order for your strength to return." Antauri wisely stated.

"But…"

"No buts kid! – Now get some rest so we can kick those big aliens back where they came from!" Sprx added.

"Oh, you know the advice about keeping the breakfast a secret? – It worked!" Otto yelled out jumping up.

"I'm glad. – Were you guys hurt?"

"Us…hurt....no way! – We dissolved that thing! She won't be bothering you anymore!" Sprx assured Chiro. Chiro seemed relieved that his friends weren't hurt. But he kept on having a strange feeling that what went on yesterday was only the beginning.

"How long was I out for?" Chiro asked.

"For a whole night. – Gibson said that your pulse was really slow, so we put you in here to make sure nothing bad happened to you." Otto replied rather sadly.

"What did the monster want with my pure heart?"

"If I was to make an assumption, I would say you were a target because they saw you use your powers; and because you are weakened." Gibson reported.

"Your power primate healing abilities have been giving you strength. Unfortunately, it can't heal those wounds of yours. – My guess is because it has that lethal liquid inside of the claws." Antauri acknowledged.

"But I thought you said I barely got hit by the monsters' claws."

"Even though you were barely hit doesn't mean you didn't receive the infection. When your strength returns, Gibson will run a test to see if you received any poisonous blows." Antauri concluded as he saw Chiro become weary. "We'll talk about this later. For now, you should rest," Antauri ordered as Chiro fell asleep once more.


	13. Diversion

**Diversion **

Antauri looked at the rest of the team. "We better leave Chiro to rest," he whispered as he headed out. The team followed and gathered in the communications room.

"So, what's the plan? – Are we going to kick alien but or what?!" Sprx asked.

"In time. – For now, we need to upgrade our scanners so they'll detect anything that causes harm to the city. – For example, to detect those heart snatchers or if the citizens life readings start to disappear. Do you think you can do it Otto?" Antauri whispered still afraid of waking up the sleeping child in the next room.

"It will be hard to over right the signal that counteracts ours; but I think I can do it!" Otto proudly yelled.

"Sh!!!!!!" The rest of the team replied as Otto looked down.

"Sorry, I forgot."

"It's alright Otto; you didn't mean to." Antauri calmed down his comrade.

"I'll continue the research I began yesterday. – I'm sure we'll have the answer to all our problems soon," Gibson whispered to the group as he walked over to the central computer. He began typing away while Otto ran to his room with the scanners.

"Can I help Gibson?" Nova asked.

"I would appreciate it." He replied.

Nova quickly turned to Antauri as an idea popped in her head.

"Can I go down to the old library and see if any of the books talk about pure hearts?" She begged. Antauri just stared at her first. _'She can't go alone because she might get attacked. But if she doesn't, we'll never figure out what these monsters are up to!'_ Antauri pondered as he looked down.

"If you think it would help, then yes; you can go. – However, if anything seems out of the ordinary, contact us immediately," Antauri replied with a concerned tone. Nova seemed to ignore that as she quickly ran to her tube.

"See you guys in a little while! – Oh ya! If Chiro wakes up again, tell me!" She finished as she descended down her tube and headed towards the public library_. 'I sure hope I won't regret my decision.'_ Antauri thought for a moment before he decided to meditate.

"If anyone needs me or Chiro wakes up, I'll be in my room meditating. – I hope I can get an insight on our enemy's plans." Antauri announced as he went up his tube. Gibson nodded in understanding and concentrated on his research again.

-------

Nova ran to the library in hopes of finding out more information about pure hearts. However, unknown to her, Roger watches from the top floor of the library. All the citizens that were on that floor were now lying lifeless on the carpet. Another heart snatcher was present with Roger and absorbed the crystals into a necklace of hers.

"So one of the monkeys is brave enough to venture out alone," Roger thought to himself. "She'll be the bait….."He smirked. Turning towards his minion, "Stay up here were no one can see you. I'll lure the monkey up here so when she's off guard, you can get her pure heart," he ordered before heading down to the first floor. The heart snatcher chuckled to herself before hiding behind bookshelves.

-----

"Excuse me ma'am, do you have any books on Pure Heart Crystals?" Nova asked in one of her sweatiest tones. But before the librarian could answer, Ma (She runs an arcade with Pa. I'm pretending they never worshipped the Skeleton King.) quickly spoke up.

"Why hello there Nova. How've you been?" She asked.

"Oh hi there! I'm good!"

"And how's everyone else?"

"They're grea……" she trailed off before she looked down sadly.

"Did I offend you?"

"No, it's just that Chiro isn't that well at the moment."

"Oh dear! – Did he get hurt?"

"Ya, real bad too. We're hoping he'll wake up real soon. – He has only woken up once since he got injured; but he was in a lot of pain."

"How did he get hurt?"

"Chiro got his Pure Heart taken out of him. – He would have been fine if it wasn't for those scratches the monster gave him."

"I hope he gets better. – Just in curiosity, why did you come here if Chiro is in that state?"

"Well, in order to stop these new bad guys is to find out what pure hearts are."

"Did you say Pure Hearts?" The librarian asked as she over heard their conversation.

"Yes. Do you happen to have any books on that subject?"

"I do believe we have some books on that subject in the basement. - That's where we keep all the old and tarred up books at."

"Thanks! – Nice talking to you Ma Shinco. I'll tell Chiro you said hi when he wakes up!"

"Thank you, bye!" Ma concluded as Nova headed down the basement stairs.

"So, you're trying to figure out what the Pure Hearts really are? Well then, we can't let that happen…." Roger trailed off as he began to descend the basement stairs.


	14. The Trap

**The Trap**

"Jeez, can this room be any dustier?" Nova muttered as she looked at the selves in the basement. It was rather small, but it was staked up with old books that Nova wasn't familiar with.

Besides her, there was only one other person in there reading silently in a corner while a man wearing a hooded brown coat walked down the stairs. Just the sight of him gave Nova the chills. She began browsing the shelves for any books on the subject of pure hearts when the man walked up to her. Nova watched him at the corner of her eye; being alert.

"Do you need help Mrs. Nova?" An eerie voice came from the cloaked man.

Nova slowly turned to him; trying to keep smiling.

"No, I'm fine, thanks." The man just turned away.

"Well if you're looking for information about pure hearts, there's a lady from planet Earth upstairs. I'm sure she can tell you everything you need to know." He concluded as Nova quickly turned around. But no one was there anymore.

"Where did he go?" She pondered. "Oh well. If there _is_ someone who knows about pure hearts up stairs then I must talk to her!" Nova informed herself as she made her way to the elevator that leads to the top floor.

"The bait is coming. While you distract the monkeys, I'll get the boy," Roger whispered to the hatchling before he disappeared.

Nova went up in the elevator as she felt as if something wasn't right. The closer she got to the top, the more afraid she became. When the elevator stopped at her floor, she gulped and the elevator doors opened.

-----

"Hey Otto, is this what you're looking for?" Sprx proclaimed as he held up a pile of screws.

"Yep! Where did you find them?"

"Under your rouge!"

"Oh ya! I put the there so I wouldn't forget where I placed them at! – Guess that didn't work very well, now did it?"

"No. Are you almost done?"

"Sorta. I still need to change the programming once I finish rewiring the scanners."

"Well hurry up. – I'm in the mood to smash some heart snatchers!"

"I'm going the fast I can! Counteracting the signal that's blocking us is difficult!"

"Well if you need my help, I'll be checking on the kid," Sprx said as he left Otto's room. Looking down at his floor, he wished there was something he could do to help. That's when a thought struck him. "I'll see if I can help Nova!" He yelled and ran to Antauri's room. Knocking slightly, the door creaked open. Sprx peeked in to see Antauri meditating; but he seemed bothered.

------

"Wh, what happened here?" Nova shouted as she saw the citizens lingering about. There was a cold chill that gave you the sense you were being watched; and trust me, it didn't feel friendly.

Nova was shaking all over in fear. Looking around every corner, she would see someone's body.

"Welcome Nova of the Hyper Force. I've been expecting you….." A voice sounded off as the elevator behind her just fell down. The crash made Nova jump as she quickly began to communicate the team.

"Nova to…Ah!!!!" Nova was cut off as she was quickly pinned to the wall.

"I've got you now!" The heart snatcher screeched as her hand turned into the deadly purple color and phased her hand into Nova.

-------

'I guess I better leave Antauri…." Sprx trailed off as he was interrupted.

Antauri's eyes snapped open as he quickly landed on the floor. "Nova's in trouble!" He cut off Sprx as the two ran into the communications room.

Gibson was typing away when an alarm went off. Quickly switching the screen, he saw Nova's communication signal off line.

"We've got to get to the library! – Gibson, you'll have to come too since Chiro can't fight," Antauri informed Gibson as Otto entered the room to see everyone heading to their tubes.

"What's going on?" He asked.

"Nova's in trouble! We've gotta go now!" Sprx replied as he slide down his tube like Antauri and Gibson already did.

"Wait for me!" Otto yelled back as he soon joined them. With all this noise, they were unaware of a certain sleeping child waking up.

"Mon, monkey team?" Chiro whispered as he woke up. Hearing the alarm, he knew his team was in trouble. Slowly sitting up, he held his heart and looked around. Breathing heavily, he slowly got off the bed maade his way to the communications room.

-------

Nova's screams soon faded as the room filled with a small light.

"It's defiantly different from everyone else's, but not as unique as Chiro's." It laughed as Nova's fur lightened and she fell to the floor. Absorbing the heart crystal, Roger appeared. Nova was still a little conscious as she over heard his plans.

"You've got the monkey. – Excellent. Now keep the others distracted while I go retrieve our real prey, Chiro." He laughed and disappeared.

"No……" Nova muttered as she fell into the deep slumber everyone else was in.

-------

"Nova…….I can't sense her anymore," Antauri informed the team.

"She might have lost her pure heart," Gibson added as Sprx's anger grew.

'_Nobody does that to Nova and Chiro and gets away with it!'_ He yelled to himself as they landed at the library's entrance. As they entered, they saw no one there. Not even bodies on the floor which meant everyone left in a hurry.

"Where do you think she is?" Sprx asked looking around in frustration.

"We can always look on one of the scanners I fixed!" Otto yelled happily as he held it up. Quickly looking at it, he saw a bad energy anomaly on the top floor.

"There's a monster on the top floor!" He acknowledged but failed to see the signal of another one heading towards the robot.

The team immediately saw the elevator in pieces and flew up the entry way.

After three minutes of flying, they arrived on the last floor to see lifeless bodies everywhere. Looking around some more, everyone's eyes widened to see Nova; lifeless on the floor as well.

"Nova!!!" Sprx yelled as he ran towards her. However, Antauri felt the presence of the heart snatcher.

"Sprx! It's a trap!" Antauri yelled as Sprx froze.

"Clever little monkey. However, you're not smart enough to stay in that pathetic robot." The hatchling said as she appeared in front of Nova.

"Get away from her!" Sprx yelled.

"I enjoyed digging into her flesh and ripping her pure heart out painfully. – Her screams were music to my ears. However, I enjoyed watching my friend tare the pure heart out of your chosen one even more!" She said as her cold and dark laughs filled the air. This made the team very angry; especially Sprx and Antauri.

"Give Nova her Pure Heart back! – Now!" Sprx ordered the creature.

"Not a chance. You see, it was absorbed into this little necklace." She replied showing the necklace to them.

"The only way of releasing everyone's hearts is to break it. – But I'll never let you touch it!"

"Oh ya! – Magno Bolt Laser!" Sprx attacked as the rest of the team joined in.

"Spin Shocker!" Gibson yelled as he managed to hit the monster. Unfortunately, it didn't affect her.

"This is highly impossible!"

"Razor Chariot!" Otto yelled as he tried to run over the monster.

"Foolish monkey…." She trailed off as she barley hit Otto. Otto went flying into the wall as Antauri attacked her from behind.

"Monkey Mind Scream!" Antauri calmly said as he succeeded in hitting the monster into the wall behind them.

-----

"Got, gotta help the team," Chiro said to himself as he made it to the central computer. There he saw Nova's signal completely gone.

"Nova….." He trailed off as anger swelled up in his voice.

"Don't worry, she's not who we are after," A unfamiliar voice sounded off behind Chiro.

Chiro, who had most of his strength back, quickly turned around to see what seemed to be a human.

"Who are you and what are you doing in the Super Robot?!" Chiro questioned.

The man chuckled. "I am Roger. And I am here to take you and your pure heart to my master; King Phoboes." Roger said as he walked towards Chiro.

"Well that's not gonna happen!" Chiro responded ignoring the pain he felt as he got in a fighting stance.

--------


	15. Change of Plans

**Change of Plans**

"Release everyone's pure heart and we'll go easy on you," Gibson said to the heart snatcher as it began to stand up.

"Never!" It screeched as it jumped at Gibson and Sprx. Antauri jumped in front of them.

"Core Disruptor!" He yelled as he attacked the monster. She screamed in pain as she fell to the floor. The necklace skidded across the room as Otto ran to retrieve it.

"No!!!!" The hatchling yelled as she disappeared and appeared in front of Otto. The heart snatcher hit him to the side, as Antauri sprang into action and grabbed the necklace. Before the heart snatcher could react, Antauri used his ghost claws and broke the necklace.

The room became warm as the heart crystals floated into their bodies. The eeriness lifted as the monster fell to her knees.

"The plan, the distraction; it's ruined!" She screamed.

Sprx ran over to Nova as he saw her Pure Heart go within her. Antauri, Otto, and Gibson surrounded the monster to make sure she wouldn't try to take the citizens pure hearts again.

"What plan?" Gibson asked.

"What distraction?" Otto added.

The monster laughed. "Do you really think we were after any of these weaklings!? – I was sent here to distract you as my commander Roger went and got the boy!" She laughed as Antauri became uneasy. 'Does she mean Chiro? Skeleton King called Chiro Boy.'

Nova opened her eyes slowly, but her vision was blurred.

"Nova, you alright?" She heard Sprx ask. Immediately, she sat up and hugged Sprx.

"It was terrible! I can't believe they make everyone feel that pain!" She cried. "I can't believe they made Chiro…..Sprx! We have to get to Chiro before that heart snatcher does!" She yelled and tried to stand up.

"What are you talking about Nova?" Sprx called back to her.

"She means Roger went to capture his prey! And his prey is that kid Chiro!" The monster laughed as Antauri and Gibson used one last attack to kill the heart snatcher.

"We've got to get back to Chiro now!" Antauri ordered the team as they immediately activated their jet packs and flew towards the Super Robot.

--------

"Why do you want to fight? – We will get you and your pure heart anyway; so why are you making this harder for yourself?"

"You're wrong! If you thought I would willingly go with you, then you are mistaken. I will never surrender! Especially when everyone on Shugazoom is counting on me!" Chiro replied.

"Who cares about an orphan?" He said. This made Chiro freeze in his place. _'How does he know I'm an orphan?'_ He asked himself.

"Why are you protecting all those who didn't even pay attention to you? – You sat there day after day hoping that you would be adopted. Wishing you would be taken away from all those people who made fun of you and beat you up because you were different." Roger said as he saw Chiro's reaction.

"They had every right to make fun of me because I did stuff no one else could."

"But what about the adults? They made you…."

"I've forgiven them! – They didn't understand me at first, but now that I'm part of the Hyper Force, they understand why I was different. – I have a family now, and that's all that matters. You have no right to talk about my past! Nor do you have the right to barge in here and try to kidnap me." Chiro responded, but the pain in his back doubled. Knowing he needed to wait until the monkey team got back, he came up with a plan.

"Oh but your wrong Chiro. I have every right to take you with me." Roger said as he stopped a foot in front of Chiro. "We need your pure heart so our King can absorb it and gain enough energy to leave his domain!" He laughed.

"We'll that's not gonna happen!" Chiro yelled back as the Super Robots training systems began to turn on (Just like in Night of Fear when Mandarin tried to kill Chiro). With all the weapons aiming towards the Heart Snatcher, he laughed.

"Do you really think you can scare me by turning on your defense systems?"

"I didn't turn them on, the robot did!" Chiro smirked.

"That's impossible! No robot has a sole!"

"Think again! – Antauri is fully robotic and he defiantly has a sole." He finished as he turned out the lights.

"If you think I need to see to catch you, you're wrong Chiro!" Roger yelled as Chiro ran to his tube and went down. But once he got there, the pain in his back became unbearable and he collapsed. Not knowing what else to do, he quickly turned his communicator on.

"Chiro to Monkey Team, do you read me?"

------

"Was that Chiro?" Nova asked as Antauri responded.

"Are you alright Chiro?"

"No. A heart snatcher has broken in, but I managed to get away. However, I'm paralyzed at the exit of my transporter tube because of my back. I can't move!"

"Where is the heart snatcher now?"

"He's preoccupied by the Super Robot's training system. The Super Robot activated it because it sensed I was in trouble. But I don't know how long it'll hold him!"

"Alright Chiro, we're almost there. Just hang on!"

"Alright, Chiro out."

"Do you think we'll get there in time?" Nova asked as all eyes were on Antauri.

"I don't know. This enemy I sense with Chiro is the strongest one I've felt our enemy send out before. Let's hope that the Super Robot can stall him till we get there," Antauri concluded as they neared the robot.

------

"Pathetic," Roger whispered as he phased through the floor. "Now where is that kid?!" He asked himself as he landed on the floor.

Since Chiro couldn't walk around yet because of his back, he began to crawl till he reached another tube access. He crawled in as it began to take him to the communications room. He knew the heart snatcher wasn't there, so once he arrived, he quickly stood up and ran to the central computer. He locked all the doors, hatches, and tubes. Sighing in relief, he changed the screen to see the monkeys in the distance.

However, else where in the robot, the heart snatcher looked around until he finally pin pointed where Chiro went. But the door in front of him closed shut.

"What?!" He yelled to himself; but then laughed. "Clever boy," he said as he began to hover off the ground.

"Roger! Change of plans! – Bring the boy here with is pure heart still within him." A voice ordered him.

"King Phoboes! Why would you want that?"

"I have plans for the boy. – He can be useful to use before we take his pure heart out."

"Alright sir." He concluded as he jumped and phased through the floors until he reached the floor Chiro was on.

Chiro quickly turned around to see a huge energy ball right before it hit him. All he could see was Roger walking towards him before his vision went black.


	16. A Big Mistake?

**A Big Mistake?**

"Pathetic human. You're lucky my master wants you alive or I would have killed you long ago," Roger said as he picked up Chiro; but a strange feeling came over him. He looked down at the unconscious boy in confusion. _'Why do I sense this from the boy? – Is his pure heart this strong?'_ He asked himself more confused then ever. _'Should I be taking this boy to my king?'_ His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of metal breaking. Roger quickly turned to see five robotic monkeys.

"Put him down!" A red one (Sprx), yelled.

When they saw Roger not complying, they all began to attack. However, Roger quickly disappeared with Chiro.

"Chiro!" Five voices yelled out as their leader and his kidnapper faded away.

------

Roger appeared in the outskirts of the city. He couldn't decide if he should return Chiro or to hand him over to his King. _'He's too strong for my King and his pure heart is too pure to be used for evil. But what about the consequences for betraying the king? – Even if I did give Chiro back and suffered the consequences, Phoboes would use my knowledge I gained about the hyper force against them.' _ He pondered as he looked for a place to take shelter at.

------

The Hyper Force ran to the central computer as Gibson began to try to find Chiro by tracking down his communicator.

"Why wasn't Chiro moving? Did that guy take Chiro's Pure Heart?" Sprx asked.

"I doubt it. I sensed Chiro's life within him; not somewhere else." Antauri confirmed.

"Then why did they take Chiro with them?" Otto asked.

"Because they probably didn't have enough time to extract Chiro's Pure Heart." Nova suggested.

"I've got a lock on Chiro's location. However, it's not very clear since that other machine is still counteracting ours." Gibson announced.

"Where is it?" Antauri asked.

"Somewhere in the outskirts of Shugazoom; in the west to be exact. They aren't very deep within the outskirts, so it shouldn't be that hard to find them," Gibson assured them.

"Alright, Hyper Force, Go!" Antauri said as the team exited the robot and began their search.

-------

Roger found a little nice, hidden area to stay at. He placed Chiro on the ground and then sat next to him.

"Why would Phoboes want to kill a pure hearted child like him?" He asked out loud. Then he remembered that his boss wanted Chiro whole. "Why did he change his mind?" He asked himself before he heard something rustle in the bushes.

Quickly standing up, the rustling stopped. Still looking around, he heard a familiar voice in his head.

"Roger, do you have the boy?" Phoboes asked. Roger looked back at Chiro. He was still unsure of what he was going to do.

"No, he's still hiding in the robot. I'm still looking for him."

"Then hurry up. My patients is warring thin…." He trailed off.

"Just so I know to be careful not to hurt he boy, why do you want him whole sir?" Roger asked trying to sound convincing.

"Because. Instead of taking his pure heart away and killing him, I've figured out another satisfying way. – Now hurry up, and don't make me wait another day," Phoboes ordered as his voice faded away. Roger looked to the ground in deep thought once more.

"I can always make sure that the King's plan doesn't hurt him severely. – I can keep an eye on Chiro and if the King tries to kill him, I can take him back to the Hyper Force!" He suddenly realized. 'The King does trust me; maybe I can convince him to allow me to watch Chiro.' Roger thought as he made up his mind. Picking Chiro up, he headed towards the fortress in the Savage Lands.

------

Antauri was looking around when a feeling struck him. Immediately he headed towards a hidden entrance to a small field of grass.

"Antauri to Monkey team, I found something." Antauri contacted the team.

"Alright, heading your way," They replied. Within the next few minutes, everyone arrived.

"Uh, what did you find exactly?" Otto asked looking around. Antauri closed his eyes and made his way towards a patch of grass that seemed to have been laid on.

"Chiro was laying here while the heart snatcher was right beside him. – The power primate still lingers here," Antauri informed the team.

"So we can't be far then, right?" Nova asked.

"They left only about five minutes ago. If we hurry, we might be able to catch up with them," Antauri informed as the team split up again and continued their search.

------

Roger knew the monkeys were in pursuit, so he used his energy to make him disappear and reappear at the fort. The guards stared at him as they saw the boy in is arms. Walking up to the front gate, the heart snatcher above looked down.

"So you have captured the boy! – Phoboes was getting angry here and began killing some of the others. I'm glad no one else will get killed because of his anger," The guard said to Roger as he opened the gate.

"I'll make sure he doesn't!" Roger called back as he entered the fortress. The door closed behind him as everyone inside went dead silent; watching Roger as he walked to the throne room. As soon as he entered, Phoboes stood up and approached the two visitors.

"Yes indeed; he does have the purest heart I have ever felt. And this is just the tip of the ice berg! Imagine his whole crystal!" Phoboes announced as studied Chiro.

"He's still unconscious from the attack sir. He wouldn't come, so I had to use the energy beam that drained his energy."

"Well then. – I can't continue my plan till he is awake, so throw him in one of the cells in the underground prison hold."

"Yes master," Roger replied as he began turning around.

"Wait!" Phoboes quickly said. Roger turned back around as Phoboes put one finger on the boy's chest and Chiro's transformation disappeared. Roger was shocked to see what looked like a normal human wearing a red long sleeve shirt and blue jeans.

"You may now take him to the prison hold," Phoboes concluded as Roger excited the throne room and down an elevator. The next time the doors opened, a new scenery took place. It wasn't much since it was under ground, but there were thousands of cells. No light from the sun was present. In fact, the only light there is down there are the lanterns on every other cell. _'I don't think this is a good place for him.'_ Roger thought. But in order for him to watch over Chiro, he knew that he had to what Phoboes said. Finding a cell that was in fair condition, he laid Chiro on the stone bench before leaving. As he stepped on the elevator, he had a feeling that he just made a big mistake.


	17. In the Fortress

**In the Fortress**

Chiro slowly woke up and held his head in pain. "What happened?" He asked himself and looked around. It was hard to see, but he could make out the cell he was in. "Great. And now I don't even now if the monkey team is okay," He asked himself as he slowly sat up. His back was in pain while he barley had enough energy to sit up. "What the! –Why am I not in hyper mode?" He whispered under his breath. Trying to find out why, he didn't pay attention to his communicator that fell off his shirt and rolled under the bench. Realizing he had more important things to worry about, his mind wondered on a different subject. "Where am I?" Looking around some more, he finally stood up and walked to the gate. Looking from side to side, he saw lanterns that were running dim and many more cells. The one in front of him made Chiro very uneasy as he saw bones on the bench. Hearing what sounded like an elevator go down, Chiro quickly made his way back to the bench and pretended to be asleep still.

Footsteps were heard in the distance as Chiro barley opened one eye. There he saw the man who took him and a cloaked heart snatcher.

"You see, he's clearly still asleep," Roger said to the hatchling.

"I wish he would just wake up. – Phoboes is killing more of us because he is too impatient."

"I know. But there's nothing we can do at the moment. – I'll keep and eye on the kid. If he wakes up, I'll bring him to King Phoboes."

"Alright," the cloaked figure replied as it went back up the elevator.

"You can talk now. I know you aren't asleep," The man said with his gaze still towards the elevator. Chiro slowly sat up with the help of the wall and watched the man closely.

"You know what's funny? – I think I'm starting to doubt my own King. Have you ever doubted your own team?"

Chiro stayed quiet; not sure what the heart snatcher was planning.

"It's okay if you don't trust me. – I wouldn't if I were you. But I'm not taking you up there until my master has settled down."

"Why?" Chiro asked in distasteful tone.

"Because he would be so mad he would kill you on the spot. - He forgets we have other plans for important prisoners like you."

"Oh ya! Why am I important to you?"

"Because you have the purest heart we have ever seen. – Our little gang has traveled to many planets and sucked the life out of them. Every planet we went to fell; except for one. And that was planet Earth. - Ever since our defeat, King Phoboes hasn't been himself. He would talk to himself about a power that only came from a pure heart. – He searched for ages until he finally came to your planet. Here he meant some Alchemist that turned bad during one of his experiments. – One desire made them become allies; power."

"Skeleton King," Chiro interrupted.

"The Skeleton King gave a substance called ooze to help form us in exchange of killing the chosen one. That is, if they ever found him." Roger said as he looked at Chiro. Chiro looked down as he knew what he meant.

"Seems like this whole universe is out to get me," Chiro said as they heard the elevator coming back down.

"Quickly! Act like you're asleep or you'll have to face Phoboes!" Roger whispered to Chiro as two heart snatchers walked up to Roger. Chiro acted like he was asleep as he listened in on their conversation.

"Is the boy awake?" One of them asked with a trembling voice.

"I'm afraid not." Roger replied.

"He has to wake up soon or Phoboes will kill us all! Even to humans he took control of!" The other one stated. Chiro became shocked once he heard this. _'I can't let those people suffer! Especially if they're from Shugazoom!'_ Chiro said to himself as he pretended to wake up for the first time.

"Where, where am I?" He asked as he slowly sat up.

'He's awake!" The heart snatchers bursted out as they looked at Chiro.

"You are in the Savage Lands in a fort our King has built. – And he'll see you now." They said as the gate opened and the two stepped in.

"Will you come willingly or do we have to use force?"

Knowing he wouldn't be able to help the citizens if he fought in his state, Chiro stood slowly and followed the three to the elevator. The doors closed and it began to move up. Roger was looking down in disappointment while the other two were trying to stay calm.

When the elevator doors opened, Chiro covered his eyes as the light took him by surprise. As the three heart snatchers stepped out, he immediately followed.

Along the way, he saw some Shugazoom citizens that looked lost and afraid. However, when one of them looked up, they immediately recognized Chiro.

"It's Chiro," People whispered. "He's here to save us."

Chiro looked at the ground knowing that he couldn't save them in his state.

It was about fifteen minutes later when they stopped at a rather large door. Roger knocked and the doors opened quickly. The two other heart snatchers went behind Chiro and pushed him forward. Roger walked up to the throne with Chiro and the other two close behind. The King stood up with a smirk on his face as he saw the child before him.

"Greetings Chiro of the Hyper Force!" He addressed as the doors closed. "I am King Phoboes. Welcome to my fortress."

Chiro stayed quiet; not knowing what to say.

"Looks like you're short for words. – Do you know why you're here?"

"Because you want everyone's pure heart." Chiro replied.

"Indeed I do want everyone's heart crystal, but I want the purest heart on this planet." He smirked as he walked towards Chiro.

"I've already looked at everyone's heart crystal here. And let me tell you; out of all the pathetic planets I've been to, your heart was the purest."

"So?"

"Oh dear boy! – Do you even know what pure hearts hold? – By the look on your face, I'm guessing you don't. Pure Hearts are more than someone's own sole. In fact, they hold power. The more traits they have, the more powerful they become. You see, heart crystals are made up of the person's character. Most people are greedy and only think of themselves. However, since you protect this planet, you adapt to emotions that give you great character. – Courage, bravery, caring, love, and many others make up your pure heart." He smirked even bigger as he stopped in front of Chiro. "And yours is the strongest I've ever felt before."

"I'm not giving you my pure heart!"

"In two time Chiro, in two time. For now, I have a proposition for you. If you say no, we'll take your pure heart right here and now. If you say yes, we'll spare you."

"Whatever it is, the answer is no!"

"Let me finish. – Order your team to lay off their search for you and stand down…."

"No way! – Besides, they wouldn't listen to me. They all know I think of them before myself, so they'll ignore me and continue searching." Chiro interrupted. This made Phoboes angry.

"Who said you could interrupt me!" Phoboes yelled as he hit Chiro against the wall.

Chiro couldn't get up right away because he slammed his back against the wall. Phoboes walked up to him, grabbed his shirt, and lifted Chiro up.

"Never interrupt me again!" He yelled as he threw Chiro at the three heart snatcher's feet.

"Now contact your team and tell them to fall back or you and all the other citizens here will be killed!" Phoboes ordered as he stared at Chiro. Chiro was sitting up slowly as his back ached in pain.

"I see you're still affected by those scratches you received. – Don't you want to rid yourself of them?"

"Ya, but I'll wait until they heal like a real warrior; unlike you!" Chiro yelled knowing what was going to happen.

"You little!" Phoboes yelled as he began to hit him. But Chiro put his hands over his head and used the power primate to hold back his attack.

"What?! How are you doing this?!" Phoboes asked.

"I don't have to be in Hyper Mode to use my powers. And you should have known that." Chiro said as he flung Phoboes back. The two heart snatchers behind Chiro quickly knocked Chiro to the floor and made sure he couldn't get up by putting on foot on his back.

Phoboes sat up; anger swelling up within him. Roger saw this and quickly thought of something.

"Sir, I think he'll come to his senses if we lock him down in the prison hold for a day or two."

Phoboes got up and dusted himself off. "Very well. – Being down there will drive even the bravest men crazy. A couple of days of imprisonment will change your mind." Phoboes said as he went to his throne. "Roger! Watch him and make sure he doesn't escape."

"Affirmative," Roger said as the one of the heart snatchers picked up Chiro's arm and dragged him to the prison hold with Roger leading the way.


	18. New Allies

_**I decided to add a new character that I made up.**_

**A New Ally**

"Did you find anything Antauri?" Gibson asked as the two meant up with each other.

"No. – I don't feel Chiro's presence here though. It's as if he has somehow made it to a farther region." Antauri replied as he closed his eyes. "I'm having trouble concentrating on his power primate signal. A darkness seems to be blocking me from seeing where Chiro is. But I'm also sensing another powerful energy out there. " This made Gibson look up in concern

"Have you felt this presence before?" Gibson asked.

"No. I've never encountered anything that felt like this before."

"Well, let's hope this new presence uses their powers for good and not evil," Gibson said as he spotted Nova and Sprx heading their way.

"Hey Antauri! Gibson! – Did you find anything?" Nova asked as she and Sprx landed next to their teammates.

"No. But Antauri believes they traveled into a different region." Gibson informed her.

This made Nova's thoughts go back to the other day_. 'Antauri said he saw a fortress in his visions. Now where would be the best place to build a fortress around here?'_

"Hi guys! Look what I found!" Otto interrupted Nova's thoughts as everyone looked at Otto.

"Did you find any clues of where they took Chiro?" Antauri asked.

"No, but look!" Otto yelled as he held up a little lizard.

Nova smacked Otto with her tail very hard.

"Ow!" Otto whimpered.

"Can't you be serious for once?! – We're supposed to be looking for Chiro! Not lizards!" Nova lectured.

"Wait a minute. – Otto, let me see that lizard," Gibson ordered as Otto handed him the lizard.

"What; are you going to ask the lizard if he saw Chiro?" Sprx remarked.

"No. – This lizard isn't from our planet."

"Then what planet is it from then?"

"While I researched pure hearts, I had to look at all the different animals on that particular planet. – It's strange to see a lizard from the planet called Earth."

"And why would that be strange?" Otto asked.

"Because that planet was attacked by the heart snatchers before us." Antauri replied.

"How did it get here then?" Nova asked as Gibson began to study the lizard more.

"Unless someone brought it here," Nova added as a rustling sound came from the bushes. Everyone froze immediately and transformed their weapons.

"Gibson, this is the presence I sensed earlier." Antauri whispered as they saw an arm come out of the bushes.

"WA, AH!" A little girl yelled as she tripped and fell to the ground. Antauri untransformed his weapons as the team followed his example. Nova went up to the girl and extended her hand.

"Are you alright?" Nova asked.

"Ya, I just tripped over the bushes." The girl replied and smiled at Nova. She took her hand and stood up.

"You shouldn't be here. It's too dangerous. – Especially since those heart snatchers are out there." Gibson informed the girl.

"I'm sorry. I was trying to ask that boy and the tall cloaked man where I was. But when I got too close, he got in a defensive mode. Although, I think the boy was hurt because he wasn't moving," She added as the monkey's eyes opened wide.

"Was the boy you saw wearing white clothing, an orange scarf, orange gloves, and had black hair?" Nova asked.

"Ya! You saw him too!?"

"No. He's our leader, Chiro. He was kidnapped and we're looking for him," Nova explained as Antauri realized something.

'_That other presence is coming__ from her.' _

"Where did you see them?" Otto asked.

"In a patch of grass not far from here. – But they disappeared in thin air."

"Disappeared in thin air! That means they can be any where on Shugazoom!" Gibson said.

"I'll help you find them!" The girl quickly offered.

"You can't. It'll be too dangerous." Nova said already getting attached to her.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine! I can take care of myself…." The girl trailed off as she spotted the lizard in Gibson's hand.

"You found Miranda!" She quickly yelled happily as she grabbed the lizard out of Gibson's Hand.

"You know this lizard?" Gibson asked looking at the girl strangely.

"Why she's not a lizard! She's a changling!" She acknowledged as the lizard transformed into a fairy like creature.

"A changling? – But I thought they were instinct!" Antauri said in astonishment.

"Well, there are only a few left on Earth. Only me and my friend Sierra can see them."

"Can see what?"

"All the hidden creatures. – Since nobody believes in them, they just made themselves invisible. But Sierra and I believe in them!" She laughed as Miranda transformed into a bird and landed on her shoulder.

"If you're from planet Earth, how did you get here?" Antauri asked getting more curious every moment.

"I was walking around a strange fortress when a bright light surrounded me and I ended up in a city here. For some reason, I was stuck in a bush. I tried to get out; but I was unable to. That's when I saw bodies of people everywhere. I knew the heart snatchers were behind it, but when I heard your voices, I tried to get out again. When I saw I was making the same boy I saw in the grass field uneasy, I stopped trying. That's when the whole battle went on."

"So it was you in the bushes! I thought I sensed another human alive, but I wasn't sure." Antauri replied as everything fell into place.

"Miranda flew off when I went out here looking for her. When I saw the boy unconscious, I knew that mean old man Roger was going to take him to the fort. But if I gave my position away, Chiro would be in an even worse situation than he already is."

"Wait, wait, wait! – So you're saying that you knew the heart snatcher?!"

"Ya. We meant before. He's confused and doesn't really know what side he wants to be on. – He doesn't want to leave his creator, but he knows what Phoboes is doing is wrong."

"His sole is conflicted. – Chiro will know how to help him see the light. - Well, it does seem like you know our enemy better than we know them. – Do you know how to defend yourself?" Antauri asked.

"Ya, Miranda can vouch for that!" She laughed and looked at Miranda.

"I vouch that Sam can defend herself." A calm and soothing voice said that came from the changling on her shoulder.

"Alright, you can come with us." Antauri said and smirked.

"Yay!" She yelled.

"By any chance, do you have any idea where Phoboes would build a fortress at?" Nova asked with all eyes on her.

"Well, he would build it in a place of solitude where no one would venture to."

"The Savage Lands," Antauri told the team.

"Well then, ready to go Sam?" Sprx asked.

"Yep!" She said as the monkey team activated their jetpacks and hovered off the ground.

"Need a lift?" Otto asked.

"No. Miranda can support me," Sam said as Miranda flew off her solder and formed into a hawk. It rapped around the girl's blue shirt straps and followed the monkey team to the savage lands.

**Author's Note:**

I didn't describe how Sam looked in the story.

Sam has black hair that touches her solders and beautiful violet eyes. A short sleeve moonlight blue shirt drapes down over her brown long jeans. She is about 14 and has a lot of confidence in herself. However, sometimes her confidence withers away.


	19. Change of Plans, Again!

**Change of Plans, Again?!**

"Get in there boy!" The heart snatcher that came with Roger said as he threw Chiro in his cell. He locked the door and headed to the elevator. Once Roger was sure they were alone, he went inside Chiro's cell.

"What were you thinking?! You could have been killed!" Roger lectured Chiro.

"Why do you care? You're after my heart crystal too!" Chiro responded.

"I care because I do!" Roger angrily said as he rested his back against the wall.

Chiro looked at his kidnapper and notice that Roger didn't even know what he was doing.

"You don't want to serve Phoboes, do you?" Chiro asked in a softer voice.

Roger looked up at Chiro to see that he didn't look angry.

"Yes…no. – I don't know! What difference does it make! Phoboes created me for one purpose and one purpose only."

"And what's that?"

"To get pure hearts!"

"Do you think he'll reward you? – You know, once he has what he wants, he'll kill you and everyone else. That's what Skeleton King did to Valina after she resurrected him."

This made Roger look up. He always knew that his boss was hungry for power and easily angered.

"Why do you think he was killing some of your kind when he didn't get what he wanted? - Antauri's always taught me that whenever you have to choose between two paths, you have to look inside of you to know which one to take. Look inside yourself and concentrate on everything that has happened. Once that's done, you'll be guided on the right path." Chiro instructed.

Roger's expression went to confusion to shock in an instant.

"Who knew a kid your age could be so wise."

"It's all thanks to Antauri!" Chiro smiled as he knew that Roger was no longer a threat.

-------

_**(2 Hours Later)**_

"Curse that dreaded boy! – I should have disposed of him long ago! If he can't stop the Hyper Force from coming here, then I guess I have to stick with my original plan." Phoboes smirked as he summoned two different heart snatchers.

"At sunrise, bring the boy here," He ordered.

"Yes sir." They quickly replied as they left immediately.

"In one hour, the whole universe will be mine!" He yelled as laughs filled his chamber.

-------

"It seems like you really admire the silver monkey Antauri a lot." Roger said.

For the past two hours, Chiro and Roger exchanged stories about their past and accomplishments. It turns out that Roger was from a planet called Yargect and was captured by Phoboes and his first hundred soldiers. They deemed him worthy and used the ooze to transform him to one of the creatures.

"Ya. I can always count on Antauri if I'm scared or need advice. He's always there for me."

"It sounds like he's a father to you."

This caught Chiro off guard. He never thought of Antauri as his father.

"Well, I guess so." Chiro admitted as he pondered on this thought.

Silence enveloped the Prison hold.

"Well, the only way to get you outta here is to wait until night fall. The guards can't see very well at night."

"That's good to know. I'm glad you're back on your path. Never stray from it again, okay?"

"Don't worry, I won't. However, I have to act like I'm still loyal to King Phoboes or they'll suspect something."

"Fine with me!" Chiro said as they heard the elevator start to come down. Roger immediately went out of the cell, locked it, and pretended to watch Chiro contently. The heart snatchers walked up to Roger and showed two metal little bracelets. This made both Roger and Chiro uneasy.

"King Phoboes wants an audience with the boy." The one on the right said. Roger nodded as he took the bracelets and unlocked Chiro's cage.

"Put your hands behind your back!" Roger yelled and winked at Chiro.

"Or what?" He replied as he wanted to play around too.

"Or we will destroy the Hyper Force." One of the heart snatchers said. Chiro did what they said as Roger put one bracelet on each hand. When he finished locking the second one, a blue electrical string appeared and made his hands close together. Chiro tried to separate them, but he was enable to.

"I didn't lock the first one all the way, so be careful." Roger whispered so low that not even the two hatchlings couldn't hear.

"Now let's go," Roger ordered as they went up the elevator. This time when the doors opened, the sun was starting to go down while all the hatchlings watched as they entered the throne room.

Phoboes was standing next to his throne with his back turned. The doors closed as Chiro felt something bad was going to happen.

"I decided to go with a different plan. You see, the one I choose this time is more effective and I can do everything I want even quicker." Phoboes turned to face everyone. "And that my friend was my first plan I had." He chuckled and began going down the stairs. Roger's eyes opened wide and fear struck him_. 'I thought he wasn't going to use his first plan! – I have less time than I thought.'_

"But my lord, I thought you weren't going through with that one!" Roger quickly yelled out.

"I realized that this boy was too powerful to be left to follow his own will. That's why I decided to extract his pure heart and then fuse the ooze with Chiro's body. - Imagine the chosen's powers controlled by me!"

"Oh ya! Well for your information, if I die, the power primate goes with me!" Chiro replied.

"That's very unfortunate. – Your body can still be used to fit in with the Hyper Force and destroy them. At least I'll have the power primate when I absorb your pure heart!"

"Antauri will feel something isn't right and not even let my body enter the Super Robot until my body is normal again. He wouldn't risk the team's well-fare like that."

"I'll figure it out. But I need your heart crystal before I can accomplish any of that." Phoboes concluded as he got off the stairs and neared where Chiro was standing.

-------

"Is that it?" Nova asked as they saw the fortress.

"Ya, that's it alright." Sam replied.

"Get down!" Antauri yelled as they saw guards patrolling the roof.

Everyone quickly dropped down and landed without a sound. Miranda changed back into a fairy like creature and sat on Sam's shoulder.

"Chiro is defiantly in there. But I can't seem to locate where exactly." Antauri informed the team.

"Well, if they're after his pure heart, they haven't taken it yet." Sam whispered as the guards passed by.

"How do you know?" Gibson asked as all eyes reverted to Sam again.

"She's right. Usually when a pure heart like his is released from the body, the sky darkens and everything seems colder." Miranda said as everyone looked back at the fort.

"How do we get in there before they do decide to extract it?" Nova asked.

"Ya; there's too many guards around. If one of us went out there, we would be caught for sure!" Otto shivered in place.

"I could get in there easily. But you guys would have trouble. – When you said you could defend yourself, how exactly?"

"Well, I can use the abilities everyone taught me! For example, the changelings have been teaching me how to blend in with my surroundings. It's sorta like going invisible."

"Show us then," Gibson requested as he had much doubt in his mind.

"Alright!" And then she was gone. The team looked around vigorously, but couldn't see her.

"If you're holding someone's hand, do they go invisible too?"

"Yep!"

"Alright then. Sprx and Gibson come with me. Nova and Otto, go with Sam and Miranda." Antauri ordered as they got in their groups.

"See you in the fortress!" Sprx whispered and he, Gibson, and Antauri phased through the ground. Everyone else turned invisible and made their way to the entrance.

Everything was going according to plan until Otto suddenly tripped and let go of Nova's hand.

"Otto!" Nova whispered loudly as all the guards stopped and saw the fallen monkey.

"It's the Hyper Force!" They charged as Sam, Miranda, and Nova became visible and tried to look for a way to dodge the monsters; but were unable to.

"I guess we'll have to do it the hard way!" Nova yelled as they began fighting the monsters. Miranda fought beside Sam as she used different attacks and melees.

------

Antauri finally got out of the dirt and saw that they were in a prison of some sort.

"This is where I feel Chiro was and maybe still is," Antauri said. Gibson, Sprx, and Antauri headed down a row of cells as Antauri stopped at an open one.

"Chiro was in here. The power primate lingers here more than it did in the grass." Antauri looked around for any clue of where he was now.

"What's that?!" Gibson pointed as Sprx crawled under the bench and pulled out an oval piece of metal.

"It's the kid's communicator!" Sprx said as he held out the piece to Gibson and Antauri.

"If his communicator is here, then where is Chiro?" Gibson asked as he looked at his brothers.


	20. In Pieces

**In Pieces.....**

"Your heart crystal is mine," Phoboes declared as his hands began to glow purple. Chiro struggled with his shackles, but couldn't break free. _'Why can't I use the power primate?'_ Chiro's thoughts were interrupted as he felt Phoboes phase his hand into his chest.

------

"If we sp…"Antauri stopped as he felt a disturbance in the power primate.

"HAAAAAAAAAAA!" They all heard.

"That's Chiro!" They all said as they followed the screams up an elevator.

------

"Boom Boom Wake Up!" Nova yelled as she killed her last opponent.

"Now let's get Chi….." Otto trailed off as a familiar scream was heard.

"Chiro!" Nova and Otto yelled as Sam ran into the fortress with the others behind.

------

The doors of the throne room flew opened as Phoboes took his hand out of the boy. Chiro's head faced the floor immediately as sweat dripped off the boy's forehead.

"My lord! The Hyper Force has reached the fortress. They're fighting the guards outside, and we're losing." A heart snatcher said panicked.

Chiro weakly opened his eyes in relief. "Monkey Team…." He whispered so low that you would have to be paying attention to hear. However, his voice was carried to the monkeys as they heard his plead as well as Roger, Miranda, and Sam. That's when he knew he had to stall.

"Sir, I suggest we hide the boy until we rid ourselves of the monkeys. They're weaker without the boy, so I say we do a full attack."

"Tell everyone to get to the outer wall now."

"Yes sir," The heart snatcher replied as he left with the doors closing behind.

"Now where was I? – Oh ya," Phoboes said as he was just about to tare into Chiro's chest when Roger Knocked him to the floor. The two hatchlings that held Chiro up sprang into action and pinned Roger to the wall. Without enough energy to stay sitting up, Chiro fell on one of his sides. Phoboes slowly stood up and walked over to Roger.

"You of all people betrayed me! – What did the boy do to you?"

"He helped me find my own path. – And it's not serving you!"

Anger swelling up in him, he hit him very hard and knocked him to the ground a couple of feet away. Phoboes walked towards Roger, cursing and mumbling to himself.

'_I have to help him somehow,'_ Chiro thought to himself as he concentrated on the power primate. The shackles prevented him from using it, but he felt it deep within him. Closing his eyes, he concentrated more and more until he was able to get a hold of a little he could use to break himself free. Chiro began fiddling with the shackles as he used the little power he summoned and broke them. There was a sudden burst of power as he felt the power primate return to him. Slowly getting to his knees, he concentrated on the power primate once more.

"Chiro Spearo!" He whispered as the energy left his body and hit Phoboes in the back; making him yelp in pain.

"Gotcha," Chiro said as he fell to his side once more, still exhausted from Phoboes's attempt to rip out his Crystal.

"You! – I spare you and give you a choice to live. And how do you repay me? You repaid me by turning my best minion against me, bringing the Hyper Force here, and then try to kill me?!"

Phoboes got up and ran to Chiro.

-----

"Hurry! He's in there!" Antauri yelled to Sprx and Gibson. They were closing in on the door when a group of heart snatchers spotted them.

"They've infiltrated the fortress!"

They all began to attack as the monkey's fought back.

"Antauri, get Chiro outta here. We can hold these things off!" Sprx yelled over the loud noise. Antauri nodded in agreement and phased through the monsters and the throne room door. But he was already too late. King Phoboes reached into Chiro once more and ripped it out very quickly; causing Chiro to yell in agonizing pain before his lifeless body fell.

"Chiro!" Antauri yelled with anger as he had to shield his eyes from the blinding light.

"Magnificent! – Truly the Pure Heart that contains powers beyond anyone's wildest dreams!" Phoboes gloated and walked towards his throne. Antauri ran over to Chiro to see he was still awake.

"Antauri; it's so cold," Chiro whispered as his eyes went soless and his skin turned pale. Antauri held Chiro's hand and caressed his hair.

"Everything will be alright. Just hang on."

"Don't let him use m-my pure heart to, gain more power."

"I'll give you back your life, I promise."

"I believen you, Antauri." Chiro whispered slowly as his eyes closed. Antauri felt Chiro's grip on him tighten, and then loosened as Chiro's skin went cold as ice. Antauri stood up and faced his enemy.

"Give back Chiro's pure heart, or I'll have to use force."

Phoboes turned around and laughed loudly.

"And what is a monkey like you going to do?" Phoboes said as he swayed back and forth. He looked drunk and unstable.

The whole atmosphere changed. It went from hot and humid to cold and eerie with the feeling of dread.

-----

"Phoboes took Chiro's Pure Heart," Sam and Miranda informed the two monkeys behind them. They went pale with fear immediately.

-----

Roger looked up to see Phoboes carrying Chiro's crystal. Tears rolled down his eyes as he knew that his new friend's sole was trapped in the crystal; defenseless and scared.

"Never under estimate your appoint," Antauri lectured as he immediately charged at Phoboes. Roger heard the voice and sat up.

"The silver monkey," He whispered as he remembered Chiro's stories. They were mostly about him and how they had a deep connection with each other. Roger used his will power to stand up and lean against the wall. He knew he had to help somehow, and he had to do it fast.

Antauri and Phoboes were trying to hit each other, but they were fairly equal.

Antauri knew that if he used any of his powers, it could possibly break Chiro's pure heart. So he tried to stay as careful as possible.

As Roger watched the fight, he noticed that Antauri was holding back a lot. Just by the way his expression was, Roger knew he worried about the crystal. _'I know what to do!'_

Roger quickly stood all the way up and spotted the two heart snatchers trying to take Chiro's body. He immediately appeared there and used a small but powerful energy blast to kill them. Then he reverted his focus towards getting Chiro's heart back. Watching the fight some more, he saw Phoboes stumble back a little; losing grip of the crystal. _'Now!'_ Roger appeared behind his boss and took the crystal and quickly reappeared by Chiro. Antauri looked at who took it and smirked at Roger.

"Monkey Mind Scream!" He attacked as Phoboes slammed into the stair case. He didn't have enough energy to get back up, so he remained on the ground.

"That's what happens when you hurt innocent people," Antauri said as he turned only to hear Phoboes cursing.

"If I can't have that power then no one can!" He yelled and used the last bit of his energy to form and energy beam and shot it at Chiro's Heart Crystal.

Gibson and Sprx opened the doors to see the crystal break into pieces. Chiro screamed once last time until there was no life left in him or the shattered crystal.

------

**I thought I should leave it off with a cliff hanger!**


	21. Sacrifice…

**Sacrifice…. **

Everyone went pale as the crystal turned into little pieces of sparkling sand on the cold floor. Antauri went over to Chiro and immediately fell to his knees as cold tears rolled down his checks. Phoboes laughed one more time before he died.

Gibson slowly walked over to the pile of sand next to the dumbfounded Roger. Gibson kneeled down and cuffed up some of the sand.

"No……" He whispered as his eyes watered up too. Sprx stood in the door way as shock made him freeze where he was.

"Without the Crystal, Chiro is, is….." Gibson trailed off not able to finish the sentence.

-----

"Over there!" Nova yelled as she saw Sprx in the door way.

"What are you doing Sprx," She asked as she looked around. There she saw Antauri on his knees crying next to Chiro and the pile of sparkling sand that went back on the floor from Gibson's hands. She knew what the sand was right then and there. Nova began crying uncontrollably. Sprx snapped out of his state and hugged Nova. She rested her head on Sprx's shoulder as he cried silently.

"What's wrong?" Otto asked as he and Sam got to the door way. They too saw want happened and Otto went over to Antauri. Sam closed her eyes as tears appeared; but they didn't fall. Miranda looked up at her friend as she tapped her chin. Sam looked down at Miranda and stopped crying.

Roger was in complete denial. _'Why did an innocent boy like Chiro receive this demise? He has done nothing but good, and deserves better. – Unlike like me. I've done nothing but hurt other planets. – But I know how to make things right!'_ Roger said to himself as he knew what he had to do. He looked over to Sam who nodded in agreement.

"Chiro didn't deserve any of this." Everyone looked at Roger with confusion.

Roger formed his hand into the cold, deadly purple color and phased his own hand within him. Without screaming, he pulled out his own heart crystal.

"He showed me what it was to have a friend and see the light. – I will transfer my heart energy into Chiro's crystal remains; sacrificing myself." Everyone was speechless that a heart snatcher was willing to sacrifice himself for Chiro. They wanted to say no, but they just couldn't. They wanted their beloved friend back.

"Antauri, Chiro looks up to more than you may think. Protect him as your own for this universe won't be the same without his warm heart and gentle spirit."

"I will, you can count on it," Antauri promised as Roger's heart crystal began to shake violently before a transparent blue light shined from his crystal to Chiro's sand one. As Roger's disappeared, the sparkling sand formed together and formed back into a crystal. Everyone shielded their eyes as the light was brighter than ever. Once they adjusted, everyone's eyes widened in disbelief as they saw Chiro's pure heart back.

But before they could thank him, Roger's body faded away.

Antauri got up and went to the crystal. Careful not to break it, he grabbed it and walked back to Chiro's body. Everyone huddled around him as it phased back within him.

------

Chiro opened his eyes to see only darkness.

"Antauri? Roger? Are you there?" he called out.

Silence enveloped the space as Chiro began to worry.

"Don't worry, you're safe now," An unfamiliar, but calming female voice replied.

"Who are you?" Chiro looked everywhere, hoping he would see someone.

"Who I am is not important right now. – Your Heart crystal was shattered along with your life."

"I'm, I'm dead?"

"Not any more. Roger gave his own heart energy to reform your crystal. He said thank you for showing him what it was like to have a friend and helping him see the light."

"Roger sacrificed himself for me?" Chiro asked as he began to worry about Roger.

"Yes. Never forget him Chiro."

"I won't. But where are you?"

"We'll meet soon. But for now, your friends are waiting….." The voice trailed off as a light shimmered behind Chiro.

"Chiro!"

"Chiro!"

"Hey kid! Wake up!"

Chiro turned towards the monkey teams voices and ran towards them. However, a pain shot through his head as his world went black again.

------

"Chiro," They all cried as Chiro's eyes began to open.

"Chiro! You're awake!" They all yelled as five robotic arms rapped around his waist. Sam took one step back as she and Miranda knew something still wasn't right.

Chiro's vision cleared as he saw five robot monkeys hugging him.

"Uh, who are you guys?" The team heard their leader say as they froze in fear immediately. Sam looked down as Miranda turned away.

-----

**And that's the end! I decided to start a new story that follows this one. Don't worry, its going to be part 2 of this story! =)**


End file.
